Hi all,
I made a digital reconstruction of a very interesting water pressure engine and designed an exhibition that currently takes place until 15th of december in the Museum of Mining History in Herdorf, Germany.
The water pressure engine was designed by Carl Ludwig Althans (1788-1864) who was something like a universal genius in technical affairs in the early 19th century. He invented many machines, water pressure engines, steam engines, built several steel works, wrote essays about geology, the use of electricity and the use of solar heat about 1850!
The machine was built in 1840 for the Guldenhardt mine near Herdorf and was in use until 1871, when a new mining shaft was put down and a steam engine was installed. The son of C. L. Althans wrote an article in 1861 about his father´s work, where he said that the antetype was a water pressure engine in the Mas-y-Logan (Maeslygan?) mine near Holywell in Flintshire, built 1826.
In the centre of the exhibition is a five minute computer generated animation of the machine. Large sized Illustrations and copies of original mechanic drawings illustrate the history of the mine and the machine.
Today there are still many remains of the mine visible in the terrain. On request, a guided tour is possible.
Exhibition: The water pressure engine of the Guldenhardt mine, 27.08.2011 - 15.12.2011
Adress: Museum of Mining History, Schulsstrasse 13, 57562 Herdorf, Germany
The catalogue of this exhibition is available in book shops.
Carsten Tojan: Die Wassersaeulenmaschine der Grube Guldenhardt (The water pressure engine of the guldenhardt mine) ISBN 978-3-8423-7821-6
http://www.trojanworks.com/althans