Benoît Fourneyron

Benoît Fourneyron ( born October 31, 1802 in Saint- Étienne, † July 31, 1867 ) was a French engineer who developed the first practical water turbine.

In 1819 he received his PhD from the School of Mines in Saint- Étienne. In April 1827 he presented his first water turbine with six horsepower, whose power he gradually increased to 50 hp. In 1832 he submitted his patent and has been honored in the same year by the Academy of Sciences.

In 1835 he designed the first pressure lines, in 1850 he opened a foundry.