POLAK, Adolf
* 15. 6. 1890, Lwów, Ukraine
† 22. 4. 1967, Gdańsk, Poland
mechanical engineer
After finishing the gymnasium in Lwow, P. started studying mechanical engineering at the Faculty of Mechanical Engineering of the Technical College in Lwow in 1908. After the outbreak of World War I, he had to drop his studies and fight at different fronts until 1921. In 1922, he once again devoted himself to his study and successfully completed it. In 1923, he became a constructor, and in 1925 an assistant at the other Chair of Mechanical Engineering at this college. From 1936 onwards, he worked at the Chair of Internal Combustion Engines, under Ludwik Eberman.
In the early 1920s, he constructed the first Polish diesel engine, which was manufactured in the Warsaw factory for the production of steam locomotives (Warschauer Dampflokomotivenbau A. G.). P. was constantly trying to improve the diesel engine and tried to adapt it to a methane drive.
From 1938 onwards, P. headed the Chair of Internal Combustion Engines, and from 1939 onwards, was also an associate professor there. After World War II, he began working at the Technical College in Gdansk, where he was active at the institutes for: machine parts (1945–1951), steam machines (1951–1956), piston engines (1956–1960) and internal combustion engines (1960–1962).
In 1955, he obtained the title doctor of technical sciences. Together with a group of engineers under his leadership, he constructed the first Polish ship steam engine „ML-8a“. The first steam engine of this type was integrated into the „Sołdek” steamship, which was used for over thirty years. His subsequent constructions were: „MC 10a“ ship steam engine with a power of 1650 HP, and the first Polish exhaust steam turbine „TP 8a“, with a power of 500 HP. These machines were manufactured in large numbers for the Polish military industry.
