Otto von Guericke
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Otto von Guericke's experiments with
static electricity.
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By
Mary
Bellis
Otto von Guericke was the inventor of the nothing
we now call a vacuum. To be more precise, Otto von Guericke proved that a vacuum
could exist, before Guericke people did not believe that a vacuum was
possible. Creating a vacuum was essential for all kinds of further research
into electronics and other innovations. Besides being an inventor and a
philosopher, Otto von Guericke served as the mayor or Burgermeister of Magdeburg,
Germany from 1646 to 1676.
 Guericke's
vacuum pumps
The hand bellows, used by early
smelters and blacksmiths for working iron and metals, was a simple type
of air compressor and the first pneumatic device. During the 17th century,
Otto von Guericke experimented with and improved air compressors. In 1650,
Otto von Guericke invented the air pump, used to create a partial vacuum.
In
1663, Guericke demonstrated the power of a vacuum with his Magdeburg
Hemispheres to
Emperor Ferdinand III. During public demonstrations, teams of horses would attempt to
pull the hemispheres apart which were held together by the force of
atmospheric pressure created using his vacuum pump.
In 1660, Otto von Guericke
invented a machine that produced static electricity, this was the first
electric generator. Otto von Guericke's generator was described as large
sulfur ball mounted on a pole inside a glass globe. The sulfur ball was
rotated by a hand crank. The rotating ball rubbed against a pad generating
static electricity sparks, however, Otto von Guericke
had no idea what the sparks were. His devise was used for early experiments
with electricity.
In 1661, Guericke invented the
manometer.
In 1671, Otto von Guericke published his
treatise "Experimenta nova Magdeburgia de vacuo spatio" or "New
Magdeburg Experiments About the Vacuum".
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Artwork LOC
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Teams of horses trying unsuccessfully
to pull apart vacuum-filled copper spheres in Magdeburg demonstration for
Emperor Ferdinand III.
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