Norbert Rillieux

1806–1894

What Norbert contributed

Patented a safer, more efficient system for evaporating sugar-cane juice under vacuum.

The story

Rillieux was a Louisiana-born engineer whose multiple-effect evaporator became a foundational industrial chemical-engineering system.

Why it matters

His process transformed sugar refining by saving fuel, reducing labor, and improving safety and quality.

Patent record
U.S. Patents 3,237 and 4,879