Article ID: CBB001551183

From Science to Industry: The Sites of Aluminium in France from the Nineteenth to the Twentieth Century (2015)

unapi

Le Roux, Muriel (Author)


Ambix: Journal of the Society for the History of Alchemy and Chemistry
Volume: 62, no. 2
Issue: 2
Pages: 114-137


Publication Date: 2015
Edition Details: Part of a Series: Sites of Chemistry in the Twentieth Century
Language: English

This paper explores the history of the isolation and industrial production of aluminium in France, from the work of Henri Sainte-Claire Deville in the 1850s to the latter part of the twentieth century, focusing on the relationships between academic research and industrial exploitation. In particular, it identifies a culture and organisation of research and development, “learning-by-doing,” that emerged in the French aluminium industry following the establishment of the first electrolytic production facilities in the late 1880s by Paul Héroult, who, along with the American Charles Hall, patented the electrolytic method of producing the metal. This French method of R&D was a product both of a scientific culture that saw a continuity between scientific research and industrial application, and of a state policy that, unlike in Germany or the United States, was late to recognise the importance of fostering, on a large scale, the relations between academic chemistry and industry. It was only after World War II that the French state came fully to recognise the importance of underpinning industry with scientific research. And it was only from the 1960s, in the face of intensifying global competition, the risks of pollution, and the cost of energy, that the major aluminium firm Pechiney et Cie was able to replace a culture of “learning-by-doing” by one that integrated fundamental science with the production process.

...More
Included in

Article Reinhardt, Carsten (2015) Sites of Chemistry in the Twentieth Century. Ambix: Journal of the Society for the History of Alchemy and Chemistry (pp. 109-113). unapi

Citation URI
https://data.isiscb.org/isis/citation/CBB001551183/

Similar Citations

Book Smith, George David; (2003)
From Monopoly to Competition: The Transformations of Alcoa, 1888--1986 (/isis/citation/CBB000740188/)

Book Black, Brian C.; (2012)
Crude Reality: Petroleum in World History (/isis/citation/CBB001201520/)

Article Jeffery Boadu; Viktor Pál; (2020)
Continuities of Dependence: Hydropower and Modernisation in Twentieth-Century Ghana (/isis/citation/CBB891955164/)

Book Greene, Ann Norton; (2008)
Horses at Work: Harnessing Power in Industrial America (/isis/citation/CBB001550729/)

Article Garland E. Allen; (2017)
Mendelism and the Promise of A New Agriculture, 1900-1945 (/isis/citation/CBB500275953/)

Book Giorgio Dell'Oro; (2021)
Mondi di carta. Materie prime, usi e commerci in età moderna (XVI-XIX secc.) (/isis/citation/CBB940967542/)

Book Levin, Miriam R.; (2000)
Cultures of Control (/isis/citation/CBB000110176/)

Book Michele Lungonelli; Martina Migliorini; (2002)
Piero Ginori Conti: scienza, cultura e innovazione industriale nella Toscana del Novecento (/isis/citation/CBB414583457/)

Book Griffin, Emma; (2010)
A Short History of the British Industrial Revolution (/isis/citation/CBB001033498/)

Book Carl A. Zimring; (2017)
Aluminum Upcycled: Sustainable Design in Historical Perspective (/isis/citation/CBB847178047/)

Article Nocera, Daniel G.; (2012)
Can We Progress from Solipsistic Science to Frugal Innovation? (/isis/citation/CBB001320104/)

Book Knowles, Anne Kelly; (2013)
Mastering Iron: The Struggle to Modernize an American Industry, 1800--1868 (/isis/citation/CBB001320950/)

Authors & Contributors
Marco Venanzi
Martina Migliorini
Gras, Alain
Pál, Viktor
Michele Lungonelli
Vrignon, Alexis
Concepts
Industrialization
Science and industry
Energy resources and technologies
Technology
Environmental history
Technology and industry
Time Periods
19th century
20th century
18th century
21st century
20th century, early
17th century
Places
United States
Great Britain
Italy
France
Europe
Birmingham (England)
Institutions
Aluminum Company of America
Comments

Be the first to comment!

{{ comment.created_by.username }} on {{ comment.created_on | date:'medium' }}

Log in or register to comment