As an Electrical Engineer,
especially dwelling in metering theory and practice, everybody must have heard
Blondel's Theorem. For starters, it says that, In a system of N conductors, N-l
meter elements, properly connected, will measure the power or energy taken. The
connection must be such that all voltage coils have a common tie to the
conductor in which there is no current coil.
But who is the man behind the
statement? He is no other than Andre Blondel, today's featured Electrical
Engineering Hero.
The theory of polyphase watthour
metering was first set forth on a scientific basis in 1893 by Andre E. Blondel,
engineer and mathematician. His theorem applies to the measurement of real
power in a polyphase system of any number of wires.
He was born on August 28, 1863 in
Chaumont, Haute Marne, in France. He is a physicist, professor, and of course
an engineer, a testament to his multi faceted
and talented life.
He was employed as an engineer by
the Lighthouses and Beacons service after graduating first in his class at the
E´cole des Ponts et Chausse´es (School of Bridges and Roadways).
Among his notable achievements
and discoveries aside from the theorem named after him are as follows:
Invented the electromagnetic
oscillograph, which won the grand prize at the St. Louis Exposition in 1904.
He demonstrated that there were
three kinds of electric arc: the primitive, secondary arc, and a succession of
oscillatory discharges.
Published a study on the coupling
of synchronous generators on a large AC electric grid.
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