Charles Gordon Curtis (April 20, 1860 in Boston – March 1953 in

Central Islip Central Islip (also known locally by its initials as CI) is a hamlet and census-designated place (CDP) within the Town of Islip in Suffolk County, New York, United States. The population was 34,450 at the 2010 census. History and overview Prio ...

, Suffolk County,

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York New York may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * ...

) was an American engineer, inventor, and patent attorney. He is best known as the developer of the eponymous Curtis

steam turbine A steam turbine or steam turbine engine is a machine or heat engine that extracts thermal energy from pressurized steam and uses it to do mechanical work utilising a rotating output shaft. Its modern manifestation was invented by Sir Charles Par ...

Early life

Curtis graduated in 1881 from

Columbia University Columbia University in the City of New York, commonly referred to as Columbia University, is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Churc ...

with a degree in

civil engineering Civil engineering is a regulation and licensure in engineering, professional engineering discipline that deals with the design, construction, and maintenance of the physical and naturally built environment, including public works such as roads ...

, followed by two years at

New York Law School New York Law School (NYLS) is a private, American law school in the Tribeca neighborhood in Manhattan, New York City. The third oldest law school in New York City, its history predates its official founding in 1891 by Theodore William Dwight, T ...

Career

After graduating in 1883, Curtis worked first as a patent attorney, then started his own patent law firm. Eight years later, he partnered with friends

Charles Crocker Charles Crocker (September 16, 1822 – August 14, 1888) was an American railroad executive who was one of the founders of the Central Pacific Railroad, which constructed the westernmost portion of the first transcontinental railroad, and took ...

and Schuyler S. Wheeler to form 'The Curtis, Crocker, Wheeler Company', with the intention of making and marketing electric appliances, such as motors and fans.

Steam turbine

In 1896, Curtis patented two types of

steam turbines A steam turbine or steam turbine engine is a machine or heat engine that extracts thermal energy from pressurized steam and uses it to do mechanical work utilising a rotating output shaft. Its modern manifestation was invented by Sir Charles Par ...

. He combined the principles of the Laval turbine and the

Parsons turbine A steam turbine or steam turbine engine is a machine or heat engine that extracts thermal energy from pressurized steam and uses it to do mechanical work utilising a rotating output shaft. Its modern manifestation was invented by Sir Charles Pars ...

into a multi-stage impulse turbine (similar to the independently developed Rateau Turbine). Curtis' turbine reached a lower efficiency than the Parsons' turbine. It was, however, much smaller and simpler in design, thus making it suitable for simple applications and mobile use (e.g.on

steamship A steamship, often referred to as a steamer, is a type of steam-powered vessel, typically ocean-faring and seaworthy, that is propelled by one or more steam engines that typically move (turn) propellers or paddlewheels. The first steamships ...

s). Curtis spoke to various companies about his turbines, but met no interest until he met Edwin W. Rice of

General Electric General Electric Company (GE) was an American Multinational corporation, multinational Conglomerate (company), conglomerate founded in 1892, incorporated in the New York (state), state of New York and headquartered in Boston. Over the year ...

. In 1901 he sold the rights to his

patent A patent is a type of intellectual property that gives its owner the legal right to exclude others from making, using, or selling an invention for a limited period of time in exchange for publishing an sufficiency of disclosure, enabling discl ...

to GE. The Curtis turbine was developed by the International Marine Curtis Turbine Company for use as a

marine propulsion Marine propulsion is the mechanism or system used to generate thrust to move a watercraft through water. While paddles and sails are still used on some smaller boats, most modern ships are propelled by mechanical systems consisting of an electri ...

, which in turn licensed it to the British shipyard

John Brown & Company John Brown and Company of Clydebank was a Scottish Naval architecture, marine engineering and shipbuilding firm. It built many notable and world-famous ships including , , , , , and ''Queen Elizabeth 2 (ship), Queen Elizabeth 2''. At its heig ...

. The latter built the Brown-Curtis turbine used in many ships in the

Royal Navy The Royal Navy (RN) is the naval warfare force of the United Kingdom. It is a component of His Majesty's Naval Service, and its officers hold their commissions from the King of the United Kingdom, King. Although warships were used by Kingdom ...

. In 1910, Curtis was awarded the Rumford Premium Prize of the

American Academy of Arts and Sciences The American Academy of Arts and Sciences (The Academy) is one of the oldest learned societies in the United States. It was founded in 1780 during the American Revolution by John Adams, John Hancock, James Bowdoin, Andrew Oliver, and other ...

for his improvements to the steam turbine.

Gas turbine and others

In 1899 Curtis developed the first functioning

gas turbine A gas turbine or gas turbine engine is a type of Internal combustion engine#Continuous combustion, continuous flow internal combustion engine. The main parts common to all gas turbine engines form the power-producing part (known as the gas gene ...

in the United States. To this end, Curtis received the annual award of the gas turbine Division of

ASME The American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME) is an American professional association that, in its own words, "promotes the art, science, and practice of multidisciplinary engineering and allied sciences around the globe" via "continuing edu ...

in 1948 and the

Holley Medal The Holley Medal is an award of ASME (the American Society of Mechanical Engineers) for "outstanding and unique act(s) of an engineering nature, accomplishing a noteworthy and timely public benefit by one or more individuals for a single achievement ...

of ASME in 1950. In addition to the above-mentioned turbines, Curtis worked on improvements to

internal combustion engine An internal combustion engine (ICE or IC engine) is a heat engine in which the combustion of a fuel occurs with an oxidizer (usually air) in a combustion chamber that is an integral part of the working fluid flow circuit. In an internal comb ...

s (on

two-stroke diesel engine A two-stroke diesel engine is a diesel engine that uses compression ignition in a two-stroke combustion cycle. It was invented by Hugo Güldner in 1899.Mau (1984) p.7 In compression ignition, air is first compressed and heated; fuel is then in ...

s) and on the drive of

torpedo A modern torpedo is an underwater ranged weapon launched above or below the water surface, self-propelled towards a target, with an explosive warhead designed to detonate either on contact with or in proximity to the target. Historically, such ...

es.

References

Bibliography

Encyclopedia Britannica Online: Charles Gordon Curtis (14 Oct. 2008)Charles Gordon Curtis ASME.org
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Curtis, Charles Gordon Lawyers from Boston 1860 births 1953 deaths New York Law School alumni Columbia School of Engineering and Applied Science alumni 19th-century American inventors