The history of the creation of the refrigerator briefly. The history of the refrigerator from the glacier to modern equipment. Who and when invented the refrigerator

The American supplier of butter, Thomas Moore, in 1803 came up with the idea to increase the shelf life by covering the butter container with rabbit skins. He named his brainchild the refrigerator. In 1805, the American Oliver Evans developed the design of a machine for obtaining cold by the method of steam compression, but the invention never came to be used in practice. In 1834, improving the ideas of Evans, Jacob Perkins patented a refrigerator.

When did the refrigerator appear: chronology

About the benefits of cold, for storing supplies, people have known for centuries. Archaeologists excavating on the territory of ancient Persia (modern Iran) found huge storage facilities underground, the thickness of the walls exceeded 2 meters, used to store ice and were called "yakshal". Glaciers were widely used, deep earthen pits with a roof, which were dismantled and blocks of ice were placed in it, the ice was kept in the cellar so that the hostess would not run into the yard for every minor need. Medieval alchemists discovered that when saltpeter is dissolved in water, the room becomes cold.

Who invented the first devices that turned water into ice

The American physician John Gorey came up with the idea of using a compressor in Evans' scheme and in 1851 presented to the public a patented apparatus for making ice. In 1857, a refrigerator car appeared. Carl von Linde's ammonia refrigeration machine made ice on an industrial scale from water and was a huge commercial success (1879).

Creative methods of obtaining artificial cold in the 19th century

In 1841, using the Evans method, John Gorey built an apparatus that lowered the temperature of the air in a room. This machine could be used as a freezer and as an air conditioner. Carl von Linde created the prototype of the first domestic refrigerator (1873). The bulky brainchild of the inventor, in which the refrigerant was highly toxic ammonia, could not be widely used in everyday life, as it was dangerous. The first electric refrigerator appeared in 1913.

The development of the refrigeration industry in the USSR

In the USSR, by a government decree, VNIHI was established in 1930, and its own laboratory was created in Leningrad, dealing with issues of “cold”. Scientists worked on a variety of topics, for example: they invented a heat-insulating material to replace cork purchased abroad. In 1951, the ZIS plant (later ZIL) manufactured the Moskva refrigerator with a refrigerator volume of 165 liters. Its net weight is 85-95 kg. The production of small-sized devices with a chamber volume of 65 liters is located at the Saratov plant. In 1961, the Minsk Refrigeration Plant (since 1977 NPO Atlant) launched the production of Minsk-1. Using the developments of these factories, the USSR launched the mass production of refrigerators in the 60s. For this, factories were built in Baku, Murom, Orsk, Apsheronsk, Krasnoyarsk, etc.

What prototypes of modern refrigerators existed in different eras

In Europe

In Germany, the production of refrigeration machines in 1912 was taken over by AEG. The first German serial refrigerator was equipped with a double door, which was tiled. At the Leipzig Fair in 1927, eight companies presented their products.

In Russia

The first industrial cold in Russia was used in Astrakhan in 1888, the fish processing plant was located on the banks of the Volga. At the beginning of the 20th century, a refrigerator was sold in Moscow, called "Eskimo", it could freeze up to 12 liters of water. In the USSR in 1934-1935, the production of commercial refrigeration equipment began at the Red Torch plant. The first serial refrigerator, with a capacity of 120 l, was produced by the Kharkov Tractor Plant under the brand name "KhTZ-120"

In America

In 1926, the Dane Christian Steenstrup proposed the design of a home refrigeration machine, the patent for which was acquired by the American General Electric. This firm in 1927 launched the Monitor-Top model. Sold a million refrigerators of this model. In 1939, GE produced a model with a freezer.

The most popular models of refrigerators in the world (indicate old models)

The most popular models of refrigerators in Russia are Zil, Minsk, Saratov. Some of these old men of the 70s of the last century can still be found in working condition somewhere in the country.

How refrigerators have changed over the course of evolution

From the first bulky boxes that use poisonous gases in their work, and weighing over a hundred kilograms. Refrigerators have acquired graceful forms, have lost a lot of weight, and increased the usable volume. Modern models use environmentally friendly freon that does not destroy the ozone layer and is completely safe for humans. Several chambers, operation from several compressors, with Internet access, equipped with a television display, this is the household refrigerator that continues to improve.

Today we cannot imagine our life without a refrigerator, which, of course, is in every home. Stocking up on food for several days, or even weeks, has become the norm for every family. But it wasn't always like that. Just a century ago, perishable foodstuffs were stored in basements and cellars. But people did not always understand that the cold can positively affect the shelf life of products.

Who created the first refrigerator?

Several thousand years ago, people used containers filled with ice to cool food. For the Roman emperor Nero in the middle of the first century AD, servants prepared ice and snow from frozen mountain reservoirs. And in Europe, they learned that cold could benefit the economy only from Marco Polo, who in his book described in detail all the advantages of using snow and ice.

From the XVIII century in Europe, wine bottles were served at the table in ceramic containers filled with ice. And in Russia, for cooling and storing food at that time, the so-called glaciers were actively used, which were a log house buried in the ground, covered with flooring and turf.

The first "refrigerator" was invented by the American Thomas Moore, who was engaged in the transportation of butter. His refrigerator consisted of a steel box wrapped in rabbit skins, placed in a wooden tub and covered with ice.

In the middle of the nineteenth century, artificial ice was first obtained. The method introduced by John Gorey was later used to create refrigerators used in the brewing and meat industries, as well as railway refrigerator cars.

In 1858, a colossal discovery was made: obtaining artificial cold due to the absorption of ammonia. After 20 years, it helped to create a compressor unit capable of producing artificial ice in large quantities. Large refrigeration plants immediately began to be used in slaughterhouses and food factories. Similar ammonia refrigerators were distributed in Moscow at the beginning of the 20th century under the name "Eskimo".

household refrigerators

The first household electric refrigerator appeared in 1913. It used toxic substances as a coolant. 13 years later, the notorious Einstein absorption refrigerator was invented. In parallel with it, a harmless, silent and durable refrigerator was made by a Danish engineer, which was intended for home use. The patent for the latest invention was acquired by General Electric, and since then the era of home refrigeration has begun.

Freon has been used as a refrigerant in domestic refrigerators since the 1930s. A decade later, refrigerators with freezers appeared, including separate ones, and in the 50s and 60s, models with a defrost function appeared on the market. In 1937, the production of refrigerators in the USSR began - the KhTZ-120 model, and in 1951 the production of the famous Moskva refrigerators began, many of which work perfectly to this day. Interestingly, it was required extremely rarely due to the fact that a huge amount of metal was used in their manufacture, and the process of their production was incredibly laborious.

Modern household refrigerators differ in many ways from those that were made half a century ago. They are practically silent, economical in terms of power consumption, have a comfortable and stylish exterior and interior design, and can also please with a long service life.

In which country was the refrigerator invented, and who became the creator of this unit? For more than a thousand years, people have been using ice-filled rooms to preserve food. And ordinary peasants had cellars in which supplies did not deteriorate for a long time. And yet the refrigerator, in the form as we know it, appeared relatively recently - about 140 years ago.

The inventor of the refrigerator is considered to be Karl von Linde - a German engineer, a member of technical and scientific associations. Linde was born in Germany but was educated in Switzerland. Linde used ammonia as a coolant in his invention, which has since been replaced by freon, a refrigerant that is safe (both for humans and for the environment).

Alternative version

Answering the question "who invented the refrigerator" is not as easy as it seems at first glance. It is believed that the first person who worked on the development of this unit was the American John Gorry (a doctor by profession). This man filed a patent for his invention in 1851, several years ahead of his "competitor" Carl von Linde.

According to historical evidence, Gorri was engaged in research in one of the clinics in Apalachicola (Florida). It should be noted that Florida has a rather hot climate, which causes considerable suffering to patients affected by tropical diseases. Wanting to alleviate the fate of his patients, Gorry began to develop an air cooling unit.

John Gorrie created the world's first compressor capable of compressing and cooling air. In fact, his installation could not be called a "refrigerator", since it performed the function of a split system. Nevertheless, the principle developed by Gorry is still used in all modern refrigerators. The unit did not bring much benefit to its inventor - until the end of his life, Gorry was engaged in medical practice.

Do you know that:

In the famous sci-fi movie Back to the Future, a refrigerator was supposed to be used instead of a car. The idea was rejected so as not to expose young viewers to the temptation to try "" using a home refrigerator
On average, a person opens the door of a home refrigerator at least twelve times a day.
Microbiologists have established that the refrigerator is the dirtiest place in the apartment. There are more bacteria per square centimeter than on the surface of a desktop, on the floor, or even on a toilet seat.
In the USA, a mini-fridge connected to a USB port was invented. The device with dimensions of 19.5x9x8 cm is designed to cool a can of cola or beer
Fur coats at fur factories are stored in special refrigerators. This allows you to protect valuable items from dust, moths and tarnish.

A modern refrigerator is a “smart” device that does not need to be defrosted, can operate in various temperature conditions, is able to kill microbes inside the chambers, and is controlled remotely using a smartphone. In addition, it can become a decoration of the kitchen due to the variety of design ideas. The first refrigerator could only cool food, but for this the housewives highly appreciated the useful invention. In the history of the development of this indispensable kitchen helper, several stages can be distinguished: the use of ice of natural origin, the use of firewood or kerosene and ammonia, an electrical appliance with freon. The information presented in the article is about this.

The most ancient refrigerators were separate rooms filled with ice or dense snow. The invention cannot be attributed to any particular people, because this method was used in many countries in various ways.

In Russia, special cellars were built to store perishable products in the summer, which at the end of winter and the beginning of spring were filled with snow or blocks of ice from the river. The negative temperature remained there until autumn due to the insulating properties of the earth layer.
In Korea, for these purposes, stone vaults were built - seogbinggo. A large room was used not by one family, but by the whole community.
Ice and snow were brought to Persia and Ancient Rome from the tops of the mountains and placed in special buildings with thick walls that did not allow heat to pass through.

Thomas Moore refrigerator

American Thomas Moore in 1803 figured out how to deliver chilled butter to customers in any weather. He put it in a steel vessel and wrapped it in rabbit skins. I put the container with oil in a wooden barrel, and covered the free space with ice. Such a refrigeration unit, which the inventor called a refrigerator, guaranteed the freshness of the oil during the journey. However, before the creation of a full-fledged refrigerator was still far away.

First artificial cold

People have long noticed that the evaporation of a liquid can cool. But it wasn't until 1858 that the French scientist Ferdinand Carré created the first artificial ice using John Gorey's method by absorbing ammonia. The unit made it possible to obtain 200 kg of ice per hour, which was then used in meat processing and dairy industries.

In 1879, the German scientist Carl von Linde invented the compressor refrigeration machine. In Moscow, at the beginning of the 20th century, such devices were known under the name "Eskimo". These units worked on wood or kerosene and produced 12 kg of ice in one cycle.

Ice was sold to the public: it was used in special tightly closed cabinets to cool food. They were also called wardrobe-refrigerators. The first domestic refrigerators ran on ice produced by large industrial plants.

In 1926, Albert Einstein and his student Leo Szilard came up with a safe device that runs on alcohol. However, the invention of a brilliant scientist did not find application.

IMPORTANT! The official year of the refrigerator's appearance is 1899: Albert Marshall from Minnesota patented his invention.

Electric refrigerators

The first use of electricity for the operation of domestic refrigeration began in 1913. But ammonia was circulating in the tubes of the device, which posed a danger to consumers. Refrigerators of that time were still bulky structures, in which the food chamber accounted for about 20% of the total volume of the structure.

In 1926, the Danish inventor Christian Steenstrup created a more convenient home-operated unit powered by electricity. The electric motor and compressor of this device were closed in a sealed case, and outwardly this design differed little from modern technology. When General Electric bought the patent for this invention and put it into production, Monitor-Top brand household refrigerators became very popular, despite the high price.

In 1930, various toxic substances (ammonia, sulfurous anhydride, chloromethyl) were replaced by a safer refrigerant - freon. This substance is used in various versions in modern technology.

In 1934, General Electric began producing an inexpensive household model, the "Lifttop", in which the condenser tubes were attached to the inner walls of the chamber.

In the 1940s refrigerators began not only to cool, but also to freeze. Freezers appeared first as a compartment, and then as a separate chamber.

In the Soviet Union, engineers worked on the creation of two types of refrigerators: absorption and compression. Several models were tested, but one compression unit was released into mass production.

At the Kharkov Tractor Plant, work on the creation of a household refrigerator began in 1937. Mass production of units of the KhTZ-120 brand was launched in 1939. Before the war, several thousand refrigerators with a volume of 120 liters were produced. Sulfur dioxide was used as a refrigerant, which made it possible to cool the air in the chamber to -3°C.

After the war, refrigerators began to be produced at the ZIS automobile plant. The equipment of the Moskva brand, produced since 1951, was distinguished by high build quality and a long service life. This device worked on freon R12.

All these engineers, scientists and industrialists have contributed to the development of this household appliance, without which it is difficult to imagine a modern kitchen.

Briefly, the history of the invention of the refrigerator can be represented as follows:

1803 - Thomas Moore's refrigerator;
1858 Ferdinand Carré's absorption apparatus;
1879 - Carl von Linde created a device with a compressor;
1899 - the first patent for a refrigerator was registered by Albert Marshall;
1913 - the first electric refrigerator;
1926 - the design of the unit, invented by Christian Steenstrup, practically does not differ from the modern one;
1930 - the use of freon.

Definitely answer the question "Who invented the refrigerator?" impossible.

Around us there are constantly a lot of objects that greatly simplify everyday life. We cannot imagine ourselves without microwave ovens, ovens, electric kettles and, of course, refrigerators. The history of the creation of each of these dates back to ancient times. However, it took more than one century for such a number of “helpers” to appear in our homes. But still, the most important place among them in the house is the refrigerator. Without it, it is simply impossible to imagine the kitchen of a modern family, but few people know that for a little less than a century, housewives did not even realize that it would be so easy and simple to keep food fresh. The history of the creation of the refrigerator is divided into several stages, and in order to study it, you need to look at the times when humanity was still at the dawn of its development.

Refrigerator: definition and meaning

Before proceeding to describe the history of the invention of the refrigerator, it is necessary to clarify what we mean by this word. If you look into the explanatory dictionary, you will find out that a refrigerator is a technical device that tends to maintain a stable low temperature in a chamber isolated from heat. This device is used primarily for storing perishable and any other products. You can also place various items that require coolness in it.

In the modern world, a refrigerator for the home is in almost every family. All developed countries are distinguished by this, and refrigeration units are used not only at home, but also for industrial purposes. It is difficult to imagine a meat processing plant, a dairy plant or any other food industry enterprise without a product cooling unit.

All refrigerators have the same principle of operation, they transfer heat from inside the chamber to the external environment, dissipating it. This is facilitated by a special installation located inside the device.

Modern household refrigerator has two types. The first is the medium temperature chamber. It is well suited for storing almost all products. The second is a low-temperature chamber, in which products are frozen. The first household cooling devices could only hold one temperature. Now each refrigerator consists of two chambers, so we can store some products at the same time, while freezing others and store them in this form for an indefinite period of time.

From antiquity to the present day: how did our ancestors store food?

The history of the refrigerator dates back to ancient times. However, scientists still do not know exactly how people came up with the idea of using cold to preserve food. Perhaps someone has noticed that in the shade, food retains its freshness longer than in the sun. Other people began to use this experience, improving this method with each subsequent generation.

Of course, at that time, people did not yet understand that the miraculous effect of cold is that at low temperatures, bacteria and microorganisms that actively multiply in food slow down their growth rates. If it is possible to bring the temperature regime to very low limits, then the bacteria die. It is this rule that underlies the principle of food storage by modern people.

The most fortunate were those peoples who lived in cold regions. They had the opportunity with the onset of winter to store their supplies right on the street. The only danger was wild animals, which could find and destroy such pantries. Therefore, they tried to place them on trees or underground. We can say that the history of the refrigerator originates precisely in these times, when a person realized that natural cold can easily be put to his service. However, the appearance of convenient devices that allow you to keep food fresh was still very far away.

The oldest refrigerator: Persian installations

What replaced the refrigerator before its invention? Scientists have a very specific answer to this question. They claim that the ancient Persians came up with a kind of prototype of the first refrigeration plant, which they used quite successfully.

Since they lived in a very dry area, maintaining the freshness of food was a serious problem for them. And they were able to solve it with the help of ice and snow from the tops of the mountains. At the same time, the Persians managed to keep the ice even in the heart of the desert. For this, a special device was used, which is a multilayer chamber.

Modern historians consider these warehouses a real miracle, the best engineers of their time definitely worked on their creation and it is worth saying that they succeeded as inventors. The Persians built small buildings with walls two meters thick. They were multi-layered and consisted of sand, clay, lime and even animal hair. Such rooms were completely covered with ice and snow, and then food was stored inside. Historians claim that they could be successfully stored in such “refrigerators” for a very long time.

The history of the creation of such installations was known in Rome. For example, the emperor Nero himself ordered the construction of food storage facilities everywhere, into which ice was brought from reservoirs and mountains. The emperor was very fond of trying all kinds of delicacies, and in order for them to remain fresh for a long time, special warehouses were used.

India and Egypt: Food Storage Rules

The Egyptians were completely unable to store ice or snow, but they quickly noticed that it was quite cold at night in the desert. Often the temperature drops to a critical level of zero degrees. Therefore, the inhabitants of Egypt put containers with water on the street, in which the liquid cooled noticeably overnight. In the morning, the vessels were brought into the house and placed in the room where the food was. Due to the low temperature of the water, they cooled noticeably.

The Indians actively used a different method. They once noticed that with intensive evaporation of a liquid, it can cool by several degrees. Therefore, the inhabitants of India often exposed containers to the wind, which were wrapped in wet rags. As a result, the temperature of the contents slightly, but decreased. For a hot climate, this was quite enough.

Asian countries

It is noteworthy that when we talk about the history of the refrigerator, it must be taken into account that almost every country in the world has contributed to the fact that, given the climate, the people came up with certain ways to preserve hard-earned food.

The Asians were extremely resourceful in this area. For example, the Koreans built seogbinggo. This word they called huge warehouses built from massive stone blocks. The walls of the vaults were so thick that they did not let heat in and did not release cold from the inside. Seogbinggo could not belong to one person, they were the property of the entire community. Everyone could store food here, while among the Koreans there was absolutely no such thing as theft.

Russian glaciers

In ancient Russia, cold was used to store food from time immemorial. In winter, ice was collected from water bodies and placed in a deep cellar. In such premises for storing food at any time of the year there was a sub-zero temperature. This allowed the family to eat fresh fish, meat and other products for a long time.

Glaciers were also very popular and widespread in Russia. These premises were built carefully and according to a special technology. An ordinary glacier looked like a traditional wooden frame dug deep into the ground. For its construction, only the thickest logs were taken, this was done to increase the thickness of the walls. A similar house was filled to the very top with a mixture of ice and snow, and only then food was placed in it. A thick layer of turf was used as a roof. Sometimes the ancient masters also added a layer of earth. This reliably protected the warehouse from overheating, and the food was kept fresh for a long time.

In addition, our ancestors invented other ways to protect food from spoilage. For example, a frog was sometimes placed in a vessel with milk. The secretions of her secretion did not harm people, but prevented the milk from souring. Of course, it is difficult to call it a full-fledged refrigerator. But this method performed its functions of preserving freshness completely.

Food storage the European way

Medieval Europe did not need refrigeration for a long time. It is known that poisoning was the most serious European problem. It affected not only the poor, but also the aristocrats. After all, they also often ate stale and already fairly spoiled foods. However, with unsurpassed tenacity, they continued to be stored without the use of cold.

Practically a revolution in the minds of Europeans was made by Marco Polo. This famous traveler was amazed by everything he saw in China and wrote a book about it. The list of Chinese miracles also included a method of cooling with saltpeter. Mixed with ice, it is able to lower the temperature to zero. This option came to the court of royal people, who began to drink chilled wine and other drinks with pleasure. However, the common people could not afford such an expensive method, and it did not become widespread.

But already in the sixteenth century, the Italians came up with a new method of lowering the temperature. They started mixing ice with salt and other chemicals. As a result, the products could not only be cooled, but also frozen. On this basis, real culinary masterpieces were created, the recipes of which Catherine de Medici once brought to Paris.

The popularity of outlandish sherbets and ice cream was so great that the owner of a small cafe "Prokop", where these delicacies were sold, managed to make a fortune. By the end of the seventeenth century, Europe was delighted with the possibility of eating chilled dishes. The era of all kinds of refrigeration units was approaching.

Thomas Moore: talented inventor and entrepreneur

So who came up with the claim that this man was their compatriot Thomas Moore. At the beginning of the nineteenth century, he had a small business of his own selling and delivering the freshest butter. The product was of excellent quality, but the oil often melted during delivery, and customers were unwilling to pay for it. The entrepreneur began to lose money and thought about creating a special installation that would cool and store his product.

The first refrigerator had, in the opinion of modern people, a rather strange look. It was a container made of steel sheets wrapped in rabbit skins. Oil was placed inside it, and the container itself was placed in a huge cedar barrel filled with ice.

The invention was a huge success and inspired engineers to experiment with refrigeration. A real sensation was the refrigerator, which functioned on ammonia and produced ice in the process. We can say that this was the beginning of the widespread use of these household appliances.

home glacier

In the second half of the nineteenth century, most wealthy families from Europe and America began to install original refrigerators in their kitchens, reminiscent of ordinary cabinets. They had a layer of natural cork and sawdust and were made of precious wood. Ice was poured inside the cabinet, and melt water was drained through a specially provided hole. Many considered this device innovative. However, he had two significant drawbacks: insufficient temperature to preserve many products and an incredibly large consumption of ice. Stocks of the latter in such a freezer for the home had to be replenished several times a week, this required serious financial expenses.

real fridge

And its widespread introduction prompted the inventors of some interesting ideas. The result of the work of engineers was the first real refrigerator released in America. It looked like a huge closet upholstered in wood, but it ran on electricity.

The Odifren refrigeration unit very quickly became in demand. However, it cost about nine hundred dollars, and the liquids used in the work were highly toxic.

Home cold factory

The issue of toxicity needed to be addressed. This was done by the Dane Steenstrup, who developed a refrigerator that did not make noise, did not poison the air with harmful fumes and was very durable. The patent for this invention was bought by General Electric, its specialists slightly modified the installation and put it on sale. Literally from the first days, the Monitor-Top model has become a sales leader, despite its high cost.

The refrigeration unit came to the USSR quite late and it did not serve at all for food storage. Ferdinand Carré invented a refrigerator at the beginning of the 20th century that produced ice. The device worked in cycles, each was designed for twelve kilograms of ice. It is noteworthy that this installation worked on wood. Some models had a compartment for pouring kerosene.

And only four years before the start of the Great Patriotic War in the USSR, a refrigerator powered by electricity and designed specifically for storing food went on sale.

Instead of a conclusion

It is difficult to say who can be called the first inventor of the refrigeration unit. After all, in every era there were craftsmen who came up with certain devices for storing food in the cold. Over the long millennia, the refrigerator has changed significantly, however, it is possible that our descendants will use completely different installations. And modern refrigerators will seem to them a ridiculous relic of the past.