Gustaaf Paul Robert Magnel (born 15 September 1889 in

Essen Essen () is the central and, after Dortmund, second-largest city of the Ruhr, the largest urban area in Germany. Its population of makes it the fourth-largest city of North Rhine-Westphalia after Cologne, Düsseldorf and Dortmund, as well as ...

(

Belgium Belgium, officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. Situated in a coastal lowland region known as the Low Countries, it is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeas ...

); died 5 July 1955 in

Ghent Ghent ( ; ; historically known as ''Gaunt'' in English) is a City status in Belgium, city and a Municipalities of Belgium, municipality in the Flemish Region of Belgium. It is the capital and largest city of the Provinces of Belgium, province ...

) was a Belgian engineer and professor at

Ghent University Ghent University (, abbreviated as UGent) is a Public university, public research university located in Ghent, in the East Flanders province of Belgium. Located in Flanders, Ghent University is the second largest Belgian university, consisting o ...

, known for his expertise regarding

reinforced concrete Reinforced concrete, also called ferroconcrete or ferro-concrete, is a composite material in which concrete's relatively low tensile strength and ductility are compensated for by the inclusion of reinforcement having higher tensile strength or ...

and

prestressed concrete Prestressed concrete is a form of concrete used in construction. It is substantially prestressed (Compression (physics), compressed) during production, in a manner that strengthens it against tensile forces which will exist when in service. Post-t ...

Biography

Gustave Magnel studied

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 ...

at Ghent University from 1907 to 1912. He left Belgium in 1914 and worked as a civil engineer at the ''D. G. Somerville & Co. Contractor Company'' until 1917, finally becoming chief engineer there. After he returned to Belgium from the UK in 1919, he joined the Strength of Materials Laboratory at Ghent University. He first started lecturing at the university in 1922 and went on to become a

lecturer Lecturer is an academic rank within many universities, though the meaning of the term varies somewhat from country to country. It generally denotes an academic expert who is hired to teach on a full- or part-time basis. They may also conduct re ...

in 1927 and, finally,

full professor Professor (commonly abbreviated as Prof.) is an academic rank at universities and other post-secondary education and research institutions in most countries. Literally, ''professor'' derives from Latin as a 'person who professes'. Professors ...

of concrete and reinforced concrete construction as well as director of the Laboratory for Reinforced Concrete Construction in 1937. The ''French Association des Ingénieurs Docteurs'' honoured Magnel with its Grande Médaille, and he received the Frank P. Brown Medal from the

Franklin Institute The Franklin Institute is a science museum and a center of science education and research in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It is named after the American scientist and wikt:statesman, statesman Benjamin Franklin. It houses the Benjamin Franklin ...

of Philadelphia. Magnel was elected a member of the Belgian Academy of Sciences and represented his country at

UNESCO The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO ) is a List of specialized agencies of the United Nations, specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) with the aim of promoting world peace and International secur ...

from 1945 to 1946. Further honours include Commander of the

Yugoslavia , common_name = Yugoslavia , life_span = 1918–19921941–1945: World War II in Yugoslavia#Axis invasion and dismemberment of Yugoslavia, Axis occupation , p1 = Kingdom of SerbiaSerbia , flag_p ...

n St. Sava Order and Chevalier de la

Légion d’Honneur The National Order of the Legion of Honour ( ), formerly the Imperial Order of the Legion of Honour (), is the highest and most prestigious French national order of merit, both military and Civil society, civil. Currently consisting of five cl ...

. Magnel was one of the pioneers of

and the inventor of a prestressing

anchorage Anchorage, officially the Municipality of Anchorage, is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Alaska. With a population of 291,247 at the 2020 census, it contains nearly 40 percent of the state's population. The Anchorage metropolita ...

system named after him and Blaton. His list of publications runs to about 200 titles, including the four-volume ''La pratique du calcul du béton armé and his book on prestressed concrete Le béton précontraint'', which was translated into several languages. Magnel supported

Eugène Freyssinet Eugène Freyssinet () (13 July 1879 – 8 June 1962) was a French structural and civil engineer. He was the major pioneer of prestressed concrete. Biography Freyssinet was born in at Objat, Corrèze, France. He worked in the ''École Nationale d ...

during the foundation of the Fédération Internationale de la Précontrainte (FIP) and was its first vice-president. He was regarded not only as a brilliant university teacher and researcher, but also as a

structural engineer Structural engineers analyze, design, plan, and research List of structural elements, structural components and structural systems to achieve design goals and ensure the safety and comfort of users or occupants. Their work takes account mainly of ...

. For instance, he was the first person to use prestressed continuous beams – in his design for Sclayn Bridge near

Andenne Andenne (; ) is a city and Municipalities of Belgium, municipality of Wallonia located in the Namur Province, province of Namur, Belgium. On January 1, 2006, Andenne had a total population of 25,240. The total area is 86.17 km² which giv ...

; and it was Magnel’s Walnut Lane Memorial Bridge that inaugurated the use of prestressed concrete in the USA. Magnel’s monograph on prestressed concrete was therefore unique because it provided a comprehensive scientific footing for this form of construction for the first time; it was an outstanding document at the transition from the invention phase (1925-1950) to the innovation phase (1950-1975) of theory of structures.

Works

* ''Calcul pratique de la poutre Vierendeel''. Ghent: Editions Fecheyr, 1933. (in French) * ''La pratique du calcul du béton armé''. Vol. III, 3rd ed. Ghent: Editions Fecheyr, 1946. (in French) * ''Stabilité des Constructions''. Vols. I & II, 3rd ed., Vols. III & IV, 2nd ed. Ghent: Editions Fecheyr, 1948. (in French) * ''Prestressed concrete'', 1948. 1st ed. * ''Le béton précontraint''. Ghent: Editions Fecheyr, 1948. (in French) * ''La pratique du calcul du béton armé''. Vols. I & II, 5th ed. Ghent: Editions Fecheyr, 1949. (in French) * ''Hormigon Précomprimido''. Buenos Aires, 1950. (in Spanich) * ''La pratique du calcul du béton armé''. Vol. IV, 3rd ed. Ghent: Editions Fecheyr, 1953. (in French) * ''Prestressed concrete''. New 3rd ed. New York: McGraw-Hill, 1954. * ''Theorie und Praxis des Spannbetons''. Trans. from the French by H. Schröder. Wiesbaden/Berlin: Bauverlag, 1956. (in German)

References

* "Gustaaf Magnel" (p. 147) in ''De Markanten'', Uitgeverij Davidsfonds, Leuven,

External links

Beton in de Belgische architectuur (1945–1970)
(Dutch)
Gustaaf Magnel (1889–1955)
(Dutch) {{DEFAULTSORT:Magnel, Gustaaf 1889 births 1955 deaths People from Essen, Belgium Belgian expatriates in England

Biography

Works

Further reading

References

External links