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Georges Claude
Photo: Agence de presse Meurisse, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons13

Georges Claude

French engineer, inventor & Nazi collaborator (1870–1960)

Georges Claude (24 September 1870 – 23 May 1960) was a French engineer and inventor. He is noted for his early work on the industrial liquefaction of air, for the invention and commercialization of neon lighting, and for a large experiment on generating energy by pumping cold seawater up from the depths.2

From Wikipedia’s article on Georges Claude (this version), CC BY-SA 4.0.

Born Sep 24, 1870, died May 23, 1960.1

About

He has been considered by some to be "the Edison of France". The Claude process for manufacturing ammonia was named for him.

Claude was an active collaborator with the German occupiers of France during the Second World War, for which he was imprisoned in 1945 and stripped of his honors.

From Wikipedia’s article on Georges Claude, shared under CC BY-SA 4.0.2

Companies

Early life and education

  • Date not recordedESPCI Paris, PSL University3

Georges Claude was born on 24 September 1870 in Paris, France, during the city's siege by German forces.

Georges Claude studied at the École supérieure de physique et de chimie industrielles de la ville de Paris (ESPCI). He then held several positions. He was an electrical inspector in a cable factory and the laboratory manager in an electric works. He founded and edited a magazine, L'Étincelle Électrique (The Electric Spark); his important friendship with Jacques-Arsène d'Arsonval apparently dates from this time. About 1896, Claude learned of the explosion risk of bottled acetylene, which was used at the time for lighting. Acetylene is explosive when stored under pressure. Claude showed that acetylene dissolved well in acetone, equivalent to storing it under 25 atmospheres of pressure, reduced the risk in handling the gas.

From Wikipedia’s article on Georges Claude (this version), CC BY-SA 4.0.

Career

Occupation: physicist, inventor, engineer, businessperson, chemist.6

  • Date not recordedWorked at Vichy France4
  • Date not recordedFounded Air Liquide5

Known for: Air Liquide.7

Personal life

  • BornSep 24, 1870, 11th arrondissement of Paris8
  • DiedMay 23, 1960, Saint-Cloud9
  • CitizenshipFrance10

Awards

  • 2007National Inventors Hall of Fame11
  • 1921Leconte Prize11
  • Date not recordedGreat Gold medal of the Société d'Encouragement au Progrès11

Sources

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