Erik Andreas Rotheim (19 September 1898 – 18 September 1938) was a Norwegian spray, aerosol spray can and valve that could hold and dispense fluids. Invention sketch

Biography

Erik Rotheim was born in Oslo, Kristiania (now Oslo), Norway. He earned his engineering degree in

Switzerland Switzerland, officially the Swiss Confederation, is a landlocked country located in west-central Europe. It is bordered by Italy to the south, France to the west, Germany to the north, and Austria and Liechtenstein to the east. Switzerland ...

. In 1921, he graduated as a chemistry engineer at

ETH Zürich ETH Zurich (; ) is a public university in Zurich, Switzerland. Founded in 1854 with the stated mission to educate engineers and scientists, the university focuses primarily on science, technology, engineering, and mathematics. ETH Zurich ra ...

with electrochemistry as a specialty. Later he attended

Karlsruhe Institute of Technology The Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT; ) is both a German public research university in Karlsruhe, Baden-Württemberg, and a research center of the Helmholtz Association. KIT was created in 2009 when the University of Karlsruhe (), founde ...

for further education.

Inventions

He established his own company in

Oslo Oslo ( or ; ) is the capital and most populous city of Norway. It constitutes both a county and a municipality. The municipality of Oslo had a population of in 2022, while the city's greater urban area had a population of 1,064,235 in 2022 ...

during 1925. He submitted an application for an aerosol spray can in October 1926. The can could dispense different fluids using a chemical propellant. The Norwegian patent was granted in June 1929. He filed the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

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 ...

application on 30 September 1927 and it was approved on 7 April 1931. In 1927, he demonstrated the Invention to paint manufacturer

Alf Bjercke Alf Richard Bjercke (30 May 1921 – 9 December 2011) was a Norwegian business magnate, consul and sports official. Early life He was born in Oslo as a grandson of Alf Bjercke. Alf Bjercke (1851–1933) was a notable businessman, especially ...

. The following year Rotheim negotiated an agreement for the use of his patent with paints, varnishes and liquid bean waxes, but commercial success was initially limited. In 1931, a separate foundation, Rotheim Spraying System, was formed for the exploitation of patent rights in the international market. Rotheim died in 1938 and the following year the company that produced the product went bankrupt. After Rotheim's death technological advancements made significant advances with its incorporation into various products including the

airbrush An airbrush is a small, air-operated tool that atomizes and sprays various media, most often paint, but also ink, dye, and make-up. Spray painting developed from the airbrush and is considered to employ a type of airbrush. History Up unt ...

and

Aerosol paint Spray paint (formally aerosol paint) is paint that comes in a sealed, pressurized can and is released in an aerosol spray when a valve button is depressed. The propellant is what the container of pressurized gas is called. When the pressure hold ...

. The patent was sold to an American company for . Commercial exploitation of the patent was not significant until it was introduced in the United States in the 1940s. Improvements to the underlying principle of the spray head by Americans

Lyle D. Goodhue Lyle D. Goodhue (September 30, 1903 – September 18, 1981) was an internationally known inventor, research chemist and entomologist, with 105 U. S. and 25 foreign patents. He invented the "aerosol bomb" (also known as the "bug bomb"), which was ...

and

William N. Sullivan William N. Sullivan (June 23, 1908 – March 2, 1979) was an American entomologist who is widely credited with co-inventing the aerosol bomb or "bug bomb," with Lyle D. Goodhue, while employed by the United States Department of Agriculture. The " ...

allowed the technology to be further adapted, first with the

Aerosol bomb Aerosol spray is a type of dispensing system which creates an aerosol mist of liquid particles. It comprises a can or bottle that contains a payload, and a propellant under pressure. When the container's valve is opened, the payload is forced out ...

for insect control, and later in various other applications. In 1949,

Robert Abplanalp Robert Henry Abplanalp, ( KHS) (April 4, 1922 – August 30, 2003) was an American inventor and engineer who invented the modern form of the aerosol spray valve, the founder of Precision Valve Corporation, a Republican political activist, and ...

files the first

aerosol valve An aerosol is a suspension of fine solid particles or liquid droplets in air or another gas. Aerosols can be generated from natural or human causes. The term ''aerosol'' commonly refers to the mixture of particulates in air, and not to the par ...

patent which was issued by the

United States Patent and Trademark Office The United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) is an List of federal agencies in the United States, agency in the United States Department of Commerce, U.S. Department of Commerce that serves as the national patent office and trademark ...

in 1953.

Legacy

Norway Post Posten Bring, formerly Posten Norge (), is the name of the Norwegian postal service. The company, owned by the Norwegian Ministry of Transport and Communications, had a monopoly until 2016 on the distribution of letters weighing less than throu ...

celebrated Rotheim's invention by issuing a commemorative stamp in 1998.Image of the Norway Postage stamp
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References

External links

Highlights of The Aerosol
(Fédération Européenne des Aerosols) 1898 births 1938 deaths Engineers from Oslo ETH Zurich alumni 20th-century Norwegian engineers 20th-century Norwegian inventors {{Norway-engineer-stub