Britain's Solar Pioneer in India: William Adams and the First Working Solar Steam Engine

In this Conversation article, Sebastian Egholm Lund of the University of Oxford recounts how William Adams, a British clerk turned engineer, designed and test‑fired a full‑scale solar steam engine in Bombay (1876). Using a giant concave mirror and a copper boiler, Adams boiled water and powered a 3 horsepower engine, presenting his results to government officials and local communities alike. The piece places Adams’s experiments in the context of Bombay’s cotton boom, British colonial governance, and the broader 19th‑century global solar‑heat experiments sparked by Augustin Mouchot. Today, India is a world leader in solar power, heading the International Solar Alliance, a legacy that makes Adams’s hopes feel both prescient and unfinished.

• Adams’s pioneering solar boiler and open‑air testing around Bombay in the 1870s
• The spectacular setup and measurements, including mirrors, a 24‑foot concave dish, and a 3‑gallon water boiler reaching 55 psi
• The political tension between energy innovation and colonial interests in India
• The lasting arc from Adams’s experiments to India’s modern solar leadership

Original publisher: The Conversation; Author: Sebastian Egholm Lund, University of Oxford

Introduction

The article presents a focused biography of William Adams, a 19th‑century energy enthusiast whose curiosity about solar power began while he worked as a clerk in a London patent office in the 1860s. Adams’s exposure to early British solar designs—using mirrors and water or both—drew him to Augustin Mouchot’s solar steam engine concept. The piece situates Adams within a broader historical moment when solar energy was gaining attention in Europe and Asia, and when imperial powers debated how to harness or control new technologies for economic and strategic advantage.

Adams’s Move to Bombay and the Vision for Solar Power

When Adams accepted the post of deputy registrar in Bombay in 1873, he carried with him a conviction that solar heat could substitute coal for industrial processes. His laboratory at Colaba, near the open sea, became a stage for public demonstration and a testbed for an industrially viable solar boiler. He built a three‑tier wooden shelving system to hold 18 looking glasses, each moveable on a swivel, allowing precise concentration of sunlight. This initial setup showcased Adams’s ingenuity and his willingness to translate theoretical solar concepts into practical hardware that could be deployed at scale in a bustling port city facing fuel shortages due to a cotton boom and wood scarcity.

Experimental Breakthroughs: From Glass to Gasoline‑like Steam

The narrative then follows Adams’s progression to more ambitious experiments. He shifted from a modest array of mirrors to two banks of mirrors—36 in total—focusing solar heat onto a copper cylinder filled with water. In this configuration, the mirrors achieved dramatic temperatures that boiled water in a copper boiler, delivering enough pressure to drive a steam engine. Adams’s description of the moment— "the rays beat like missiles in a continuous and incessant storm of solar fire"—captures the intensity and novelty of the moment. A fortnight of sustained operation produced tangible power: enough to propel a three‑horsepower steam engine, demonstrating a fully functioning solar steam system fit for industrial‑scale use. The achievement marked Britain’s first working solar‑driven industrial engine, built and tested under colonial conditions far from its home base.

The 1876 Delivery and Public Demonstration

Adams’s London solar boiler was shipped to Bombay in 1876, where the experiments were conducted under the gaze of government officials, newspaper reporters, mill owners, and local Indian communities. Safety gear, such as Adams’s dark glasses, accompanied the demonstration, underscoring the practical realities and hazards of concentrating sunlight at scale. The public demonstrations helped disseminate the concept locally and showcased how solar energy could function in a hot, sunny climate—conditions that made solar concentration nearly ideal for large‑scale heating and steam production.

Visionary Writings and Colonial Skepticism

Beyond the laboratory, Adams wrote a treatise in 1878 arguing that equatorial regions possessed an inexhaustible, gratuitous source of wealth in the clear skies above them, capable of transforming energy economics and industrial development. He envisioned solar heat as a substitute for coal in various uses—from cotton gins to crematories—urging the British government to invest in this energy substitute in its Indian empire. Yet his ambitions collided with the realities of colonial governance. Bombay’s governor, Sir Richard Temple, concluded that solar heat could not be used commercially on a large scale, citing political and worker‑related objections to holidays on days with poor sunlight. The result was a paradox: the technology had real potential, but the political economy of empire and the interests of coal exporters impeded progress.

Legacy and the Modern Solar Era in India

The article concludes by connecting Adams’s 19th‑century experiments to India’s present energy landscape. Today, India stands as a global solar power leader and chairs the International Solar Alliance, a testament to how the country has embraced solar energy as a cornerstone of its energy transition. The author reflects on what might have happened if Adams’s solar vision had found greater support within colonial administrations, suggesting that history might have shifted earlier toward less coal dependence. The piece ends with a provocative question: how much further along would the solar revolution be if 19th‑century experiments had enjoyed more receptive political backing?

Conclusion

The story of William Adams is a microcosm of the larger history of solar energy—a narrative of promising technology, political resistance, and a modern rekindling of solar as a central energy resource. The article underscores that India’s current leadership in solar power stands on the shoulders of early experiments and aspirational thinkers who challenged the status quo, even when political structures did not cooperate. It invites readers to consider how historical context shapes the paths of science and energy innovation, and whether today’s policy frameworks can better nurture transformative technologies from the lab to the factory floor.

Author: Sebastian Egholm Lund, University of Oxford