Jonas Wenström (4 August 1855 in
Hällefors – 22 December 1893 in
Västerås
Västerås () is a city in central Sweden on the shore of Mälaren, Lake Mälaren in the province of Västmanland, west of Stockholm. The city had a population of 127,799 at the end of 2019, out of the municipal total of 158,653, over 100,000 mo ...
) was a
Swedish engineer and inventor, who in
1890
Events
January
* January 1 – The Kingdom of Italy establishes Eritrea as its colony in the Horn of Africa.
* January 2 – Alice Sanger becomes the first female staffer in the White House.
* January 11 – 1890 British Ultimatum: The Uni ...
received a Swedish patent on the same
three-phase system independently developed by
Mikhail Dolivo-Dobrovolsky
Mikhail Osipovich Dolivo-Dobrovolsky (; or ''Michail Ossipowitsch Doliwo-Dobrowolski''; – ) was a Russian-born engineer, electrician, and inventor of Polish-Russian origins, active in the German Empire and also in Switzerland.
After study ...
.
This formed the basis for
ASEA
''Allmänna Svenska Elektriska Aktiebolaget'' ( English translation: General Swedish Electrical Limited Company; Swedish abbreviation: ASEA) was a Swedish industrial company.
History
ASEA was founded in 1883 by Ludvig Fredholm in Västerås ...
(later
ABB
ABB Group is a Swedish-Swiss multinational electrical engineering corporation. Incorporated in Switzerland as ABB Ltd., and headquartered in Zurich, it is dual-listed on the Nasdaq Nordic exchange in Stockholm, Sweden, and the SIX Swiss Excha ...
).
The possibility of transferring electrical power from a waterfall at a distance was explored at the
Grängesberg
Grängesberg () is a locality situated in Ludvika Municipality, Dalarna County, Sweden, with 3,481 inhabitants in 2010.
The town was dominated by iron-ore extraction at Grängesberg ore field (Grängesbergs malmfält) from the 16th century to 19 ...
mine. A fall at Hällsjön, Smedjebackens kommun, where a small iron work had been located, was selected. In 1893, a three-phase system was used to transfer 400
horsepower
Horsepower (hp) is a unit of measurement of power, or the rate at which work is done, usually in reference to the output of engines or motors. There are many different standards and types of horsepower. Two common definitions used today are t ...
a distance of , becoming the first commercial application.

About the invention of electric light, Wenström wrote: "Edison's new invention of electric light: a glowing carbon strip, is the same thing that I discovered a year ago ... If I had his laboratory, and resources, I would have done the same and better ... a graphite strip between two mica plates provide a more effective light than Edison's."
References
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Wenstrom, Jonas
1855 births
1893 deaths
Swedish engineers
19th-century Swedish businesspeople
People from Hällefors Municipality