I am still seeking detailed information about the J. B. Elkington (1865)
patented copper electrorefining process used in the first such refinery
installed in Pembroke, Wales in 1869. The Mason and Elkington electric power
plant, built there then to power the refinery, may have been the first
anywhere.* There are claims that Thomas Edison actually built the first such
plants in London and in New York in 1882, with both used for electric
lighting. A detailed description of the Welsh innovation in this technology
should be made available to establish its role in industry’s phenomenal
growth over the past century. This growth was made possible only by a
parallel growth in electric power availability.
* History of Technology, vol. 5 (Oxford, London) Chapter 4, p. 100
[log in to unmask] (Emeritus Prof. - Krumb School of Mines, Columbia
University)
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