The Original Inventor of Titanium Anodes
The Titanium anode was invented in the 1950s. As a new electrode material, it has brought revolutionary breakthroughs to the electrochemical applications, making many impossibilities become possible. Among others, Henri Beer, a legendary inventor and his company MAGENTO have played an indispensable role.
With the help of a wine maker Jansen family, Beer built a laboratory in an abandoned cellar to develop the magic ferrite magnetic power. In order to find a suitable electrode material for such harsh applications, Beer invented the insoluble titanium-based electroplated platinum anode, which was superior to the traditional graphite or pure platinum electrode in terms of cost, processing and properties. Beer realized that such special composite electrode composed of two metals may have a broad application prospect and thus soon applied for a patent in 1957. Soon afterwards, he founded a company together with the Jansen family named Magneto Chemie, a homonym of magnetic materials.
In the same year, ICI, one of the largest industrial companies in UK, also invented a similar product. But unfortunately, its patent application was rejected since Beer submitted the application just weeks ago. Reluctantly, ICI proposed a joint development to Magneto, and their cooperation lasted till 1965. During the cooperation, Beer advised the use of ruthenium oxide coating instead of the expensive platinum to lower the cost and increase electrolytic efficiency, but this idea was rejected by many people at ICI. After they broke up, each party had a completely different view on who owned the patent and even brought this case to the court.
In a rage, Beer sold the patent of electrode technology to Denora, an emerging Italian equipment manufacturer in the chlor-alkali industry and helped Denora take the lead in applying such new anode technology in the chlor-alkali industry. With such an innovative technology, Denora made a major blow to the similar business of ICI in the market of chlor-alkali equipment. Although venting his grievances, but Beer’s act was a point of controversy at the time by many people.
The invention of Titanium anode is regarded as one of the greatest inventions in the field of electrochemistry in the 20th century, especially the electrocatalytic characteristic of the noble metallic oxide electrode identified by Henri Beer completely changed the traditional understanding about metallic oxide. In 1986, Henri Beer was awarded the honorary doctor’s degree by Eindhoven University in the Netherlands for his outstanding contribution in the field of electrochemistry. At the awarding ceremony, Henri Beer commented: “I didn’t receive any higher education, and all my gains originated from my persistence, enthusiasm, intuition and opportunity. My inventions did not make me rich, but the world has become a better place.”
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