Montgolfier's hydraulic ram
Ariete hidráulico de Montgolfier
- Date
- 1796 · confidence high
- Place
- Voiron, Isère, France
- Credited to
- Joseph-Michel Montgolfier
- Field
- Matter & energy
⚠️ Disputed: the sources disagree.
What it is
A pump that uses the water-hammer of a flowing column to lift part of the water higher without engine or fuel. It runs only on the energy of the stream itself and is still used in rural areas.
John Whitehurst built a hand-operated version in 1772; Montgolfier made it automatic in 1796 and patented it with Aimé Argand in 1797.
What it led to
- water supply to farms and villages without electricity
- irrigation of higher ground
- self-powered pumping in development programmes