Alexander Oliver Rankine
| Alexander Rankine | |
|---|---|
| Born | Alexander Oliver Rankine 8 December 1881 |
| Died | 20 January 1956 (aged 74) |
| Institutions | Imperial College London |
| Alma mater | University College London |
| Known for | Trouton–Rankine experiment |
| Notable awards | |
Alexander Oliver Rankine OBE FRS (8 December 1881 – 20 January 1956) was a British physicist who worked on the viscosity of gases, molecular dynamics, optics, acoustics and geophysics.
Rankine carried out government research during both World Wars, working on anti-submarine technology and on fog dispersal systems. He studied and worked at University College London, and was a professor of physics at Imperial College London.
Rankine is most associated with the Trouton–Rankine experiment of 1908, but he also worked on early devices for the optical transmission of sound, and improved gravimeter and magnetometer designs. The latter part of his career was spent working for the Anglo-Iranian Oil Company. He also served in a range of positions with many learned societies, including periods as President of the Physical Society and Secretary to the Royal Institution.
Alexander Oliver Rankine was born on 8 December 1881 in Guildford, Surrey, England. The son of the Reverend John Rankine, a Baptist minister of Scottish descent, Alexander was brought up in and was a member of the Baptist Church. Like his father, his mother was also of Scottish ancestry.
Rankine was educated at the Royal Grammar School, Guildford, and then studied at University College London (UCL), graduating in 1904 with first-class honours in physics. Following graduation, he worked as an assistant in the UCL physics department from 1904, a position he would remain in until 1919 apart from a period spent doing wartime research. In 1907, he married Ruby Irene Short, with whom he would have two sons and two daughters.
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