Denis Papin

Today is the birthday of physicist Denis Papin, who invented the pressure cooker and laid the foundation for the invention of the steam engine. Papinwas born in Blois, France, in 1647. He started his physics career working with two of the greats, Christiaan Huygens (who devised the wave theory of light) and Robert Boyle. Notably, Boyle derived a law that described the relationship between pressure and volume in a gas. That research ledPapin to design and build a steam digester, or pressure cooker, which raises the boiling point of water by generating pressure. He even built a safety valve to relieve pressure and prevent the pot from exploding.Papin’s influence extends beyond the culinary arts, however, because he understood the significance of the force the steam exerts on the lid. He conceived of the steam engine, which uses steam to drive a piston. Papinnever built an engine, but his ideas stimulated others and culminated in the invention that powered the Industrial Revolution.

Date in History: 22 August 1647