Vapor-Compression Refrigeration

Jacob Perkins, Britain, patent of 1834. The refrigeration cycle behind every modern fridge.

Overview

American inventor Perkins, working in London, patented the first closed-cycle compressor system using ether. The principle, compress a gas, condense it, expand it to absorb heat, still runs every refrigerator and air conditioner. Alexander Twinning commercialized ice-making in the 1850s; James Harrison of Australia patented ether systems in 1855 for brewing and meat. Frozen meat shipments rebuilt Australasia's economy by the 1880s. Home refrigerators arrived with Kelvinator in 1918.