A lighter is a portable device that uses a mechanical or electrical mechanism to create a controlled flame for igniting cigarettes, candles, campfires, fireworks or other flammable materials. The German chemist Johann Wolfgang Dobereiner is credited with inventing one of the first lighters in 1823, a device known as Dobereiner's lamp that produced a flame by passing hydrogen gas over a platinum catalyst, but the modern disposable lighter only became practical after the Austrian chemist Carl Auer von Welsbach developed the spark-producing alloy ferrocerium in 1903, after which companies such as Ronson and Zippo commercialized lighter designs through the 20th century.
Facts
Patent or First-Use DateSourced to the subject's own accountCovers Carl Auer von Welsbach's 1903 ferrocerium development, the ignition mechanism that enabled the modern lighter, distinct from Dobereiner's earlier 1823 device recorded under year. YearSourced to the subject's own account SignificanceSourced to the subject's own accountEarly lighters relied on a catalytic hydrogen reaction to ignite; the 1903 development of ferrocerium later supplied the cheap, reliable spark mechanism used in most modern lighters. 1 FAQs
Why did ferrocerium make lighters cheap enough to throw away?
Ferrocerium gives a large spark from a simple scratch and costs little.
When ferrocerium is scratched it produces a large spark that lights the fuel of many lighters, and it is inexpensive enough to use in disposable items. Earlier lighters such as Dobereiner's lamp of 1823 relied on a catalytic hydrogen reaction, so the 1903 ferrocerium alloy supplied the cheap and reliable spark that made the modern disposable lighter practical.
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In Field
Source Lighter (Wikipedia)
Sources
1. Lighter (Wikipedia)
WikipediaDobereiner's lamp section
One of the first lighters was invented by a German chemist named Johann Wolfgang Dobereiner in 1823, and was often called Dobereiner's lamp.
Ferrocerium section
When scratched, it produces a large spark that is responsible for lighting the fuel of many lighters, and is suitably inexpensive for use in disposable items.
In Field: Chemical Engineering, Lead section
Some lighters use a consumable chemical fuel, others use electricity from a battery.
In Group: Fire-Making Devices, Lead paragraph
A lighter is a portable device which uses mechanical or electrical means to create a controlled flame
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