Augustin Mouchot’s Solar Concentrator, 1869. (source) The
history of renewable energy is fascinating. We posted a while
back about early efforts to harness the power of waves. You may
also be interested to learn more about the 19th century work of
Mouchot and Ericsson, early pioneers of solar thermal
concentrators (CSP solar thermal power). Early schematics of
Augustin Mouchot’s Solar Concentrator. Augustin Mouchot taught
secondary school mathematics from 1852-1871, during which time
he embarked on a series of experiments in the conversion of
solar energy into useful work. His proof-of-concept designs were
so successful that he obtained support from the French
government to pursue the research full-time. His work was
inspired and informed by that of Horace-Bénédict de Saussure
(who had constructed the first successful solar oven in 1767)
and Claude Pouillet (who invented the Pyrheliometer in 1838).
Augustin Mouchot’s Solar Concentrator at the Universal
Exhibition in Paris, 1878. (source) Mouchot worked on his