Romanovsky, Gennady Danilovich

Origin

Born in the family of the Polish nobleman Danila Konstantinovich Romanovsky, a doctor of the Miass factory and gold mines that were part of the Zlatoust mountain district system .

Belonged to a large family, whose representatives were associated with mining ^[1] ; among his brothers, in particular, Konstantin Romanovsky .

Education

He graduated from the Institute of Corps of Mining Engineers in 1851, the sixth on the list.

Activities

• In 1851, he was appointed with the rank of lieutenant for " further service " for coal exploration in the Tula province and geognostic exploration in the Ryazan, Kaluga and Moscow provinces. His passion for drilling was noticed by the leadership of the Mining Department and coincided with the need to intensify efforts in Central Russia to create sustainable supply systems for provincial and district cities with drinking water.
• In 1851 - 1853, Lieutenant Romanovsky conducted geological exploration in the Tula, Ryazan, Kaluga and Moscow provinces. In 1853, he successfully directed the drilling of an artesian well in Serpukhov .
  • Skillful management of water well drilling in the area of ​​Trekhgorny manufactory in Moscow nominated Gennady Romanovsky to the ranks of innovators in the field of mining. First of all, he drew attention to the significant design flaws of bits purchased abroad. After a short use, they became dull, and to restore them had to produce expensive welding with steel. Mining engineer Romanovsky found a fairly simple and effective solution by proposing for the first time in Russia an original design of a bit with inserted blades.
  • Another novelty in the implementation of this sinking was the improvement of the method of plugging boreholes. The use of the invented cementing baffle device made it possible to reliably ensure cement cementation of the borehole wall.
  • Another example of his innovative approach was the drilling in 1859 by machine tools of the first well in Russia near the village of Erino near Podolsk ( Moscow province ). Here for the penetration of solid rocks by the shock-rod method, he first used a steam engine. Quite quickly, his example was widely used in Russia, and Romanovsky was rightfully considered the founder of the Russian school of mechanical drilling.
  • Successful work in the Moscow region was recognized in the Russian engineering and scientific community, and he was elected a member of the Imperial Mineralogical Society.
• In early 1863, Gennady Romanovsky received a responsible assignment - to begin prospecting in the Volga region .

• In 1864, an important milestone in his engineering biography was the drilling of an artesian well in St. Petersburg . He calls for the need for a critical review of the technology for manufacturing wooden drill rods according to the method of the French engineer Kind and advocates the development of new methods and advanced drilling techniques in Russia.
• In 1865, " at the Highest Command " Gennady Romanovsky was the first Russian specialist sent on a ten-month business trip abroad, including to " study the geological nature of oil fields, methods for their exploration and production ." For him, a long journey to the North American United States at first ran through the leading powers of the Old World - France and Great Britain .
  • Mining engineer Romanovsky during his stay in France carefully collected all the available information on drilling techniques and technology, trying not to miss even the little things. Subsequently, this helped him a lot when working on a new drilling tool.
  • In North America, Lieutenant Colonel Romanovsky visited the oil fields of Pennsylvania . Gennady Romanovsky detailed the results of his trip in the Report to the Mining Department of Lieutenant Colonel Romanovsky on drilling operations in Europe and on lighting materials . Based on an in-depth analysis, he described the state of oil business in the United States , outlined the prospects and directions for the further development of oil geology and improved drilling equipment, and gave some practical recommendations for domestic specialists.
• In 1866, an order was received from the Director of the Mining Department on a second trip to the Volga region. It was necessary to complete the work begun in 1863 .
• In 1868, Romanovsky was the first in Russia to make a forecast about the prospects for oil in the Volga-Ural province, which received the sonorous name of "Second Baku" in the 30s of the XX century.
• In 1867 - 1871, the activity of the mining engineer Romanovsky was associated with the study of the Crimea and the Kuban .
• In 1871, State Councilor Gennady Romanovsky received an offer from the Director of the St. Petersburg Mining Institute, Academician Grigory Gelmersen, to begin teaching a course in mining art.
• In 1872, Romanovsky was " graciously granted a diamond ring for the success of his plumbing projects at her Imperial Majesty's estate in Livadia ."
• At the beginning of 1875, at the invitation of Governor-General Kaufman K. P., State Counselor Romanovsky, “ exchanged the professor’s easy chair for difficult, full travel hardships over the wild, at that time barely accessible and far from safe wilds of Turkestan ”, arrived in Tashkent .

• In 1879 , after returning from a four-year Turkestan expedition, Professor Romanovsky resumed reading the course of mining art. Soon he was elected a member of the Mining Scientific Committee .
• On April 20, 1880, news came to the institute that Emperor Alexander II " about excellent-diligent service and special works deigned to be the rank of real state adviser " by Professor Romanovsky. In the general rank, Gennady Romanovsky went on a business trip to the Ekaterinoslav province , on the vast territory of which the southern mining and metallurgical region of the Russian Empire was created at an accelerated pace.
• In 1881, for the geological exploration of the Turkestan Territory, mining engineer Gennady Romanovsky was awarded the highest award of the Imperial Russian Geographical Society - the Konstantinovsky Medal .
• In 1884, in recognition of his services to Russian geology, Professor Romanovsky was elected an honorary member of the Imperial Mineralogical Society. At the beginning of the same year, Emperor Alexander III granted him the rank of Privy Councilor .
• April 2, 1895 became the full holder of the Order of St. Anne , one of the most significant orders of the Russian Empire, whose motto was “Loving the Truth, Piety, Fidelity”.
• In the summer of 1901, the 50th anniversary of the activities in mining of Privy Councilor Gennady Romanovsky was widely celebrated. An article about this event was placed in the Gorny Zhurnal, and the jubilee’s words about his cherished dream — exploration by deep drilling for oil in the Ukhta river basin, the Arkhangelsk province and the Ferghana Valley, where oil sources can be as plentiful as and in the Caucasus . "
• On December 24, 1902, the Minister of Agriculture and State Property Alexey Ermolov approved the award for the Professor of the Mining Institute, Privy Advisor G. D. Romanovsky " for the best work in geology, mining and mineralogy ." Quickly enough, this award was recognized by the engineering community and became one of the prestigious awards for Russian mining engineers. Until the last days, Gennady Romanovsky actively worked, by his example, again and again refuting the allegations of skeptics about the age limit of human creativity.
• In 1904 he was sent to Poland , “ to the Dombrow Coal Basin , to resolve issues related to the replacement of the development of copper seams with collapse of the roof practicing there with an empty rock laying. Returning from a business trip on December 19, 1904 , he felt severe back pain from a fall. "
• In March 1905, his disease intensified, complicated by cancerous inflammation.

On April 22 ( May 5, according to the new style) in 1906, after a serious illness, he passed away and was buried in the "mountain" section of the Smolensky Orthodox cemetery in St. Petersburg .

• Order of St. Stanislav 3rd Art. (eighteen??);
• Order of St. Vladimir 2nd art. (eighteen??);
• Order of St. Anne 1st Art. (1895).

• The works of Romanovsky (about 150 publications) have been placed predominantly in the "Mountain Journal" and "Notes of the Mineralogical Society", from the beginning of the 50s.

The most important of them:

• "General geognostic survey of soil in Moscow, Serpukhov and Podolsky counties", "Mountain Journal" , 1856 ,
• "Geognostic survey of the southern part of the Ryazan province" (ib., 1857 ),
• "On some methods and tools used in drilling mines and wells of large diameter", "Mountain Journal" , No. 4, p. 3, 1862 ,
• “Notes on the Upper Devonian Formation of the Moscow Region Basin” (ib., 1864 ),
• On the lifting of a drill from the St. Petersburg well, "Mountain Journal" , part II, Prince. IV, 1864 ,
• On the replacement of drilling of gold placers with boreholes, Gorny Zhurnal , part II, book. IV, 397, 1864 ,
• "On mountain oil in general and North American petrol in particular with a description of the geological conditions of its location, methods of extraction and purification", "Mountain Journal" , No. 2, 3 of 1866 ,
• Self-rotating freely falling drilling tool, "Mountain Journal" No. 3, 1866 ,
• Report to the Mining Department of Lieutenant Colonel Romanovsky on drilling operations in Europe and on lighting materials, Mining Journal , No. 4, 1866 ,
• "The geological sketch of the Tauride province" (ib., 1867 ),
• About Samara oil sources, coal-soil of the Sterlitamak Uyezd and some new discoveries in the north-eastern part of the Orenburg Territory, Gorny Zhurnal , part III, 1868 ,
• Caucasian Oil as a Future Source of Significant State Revenue, Mountain Journal , No. 5, 1869 ,
• Extract from the report on the progress of work at the well in s. Aybara. "Mountain Journal" , No. 5, 1871 ,
• "Geological and paleontological review of the northwestern Tien Shan and the southeastern part of the Turan lowland", 1877 ,
• “On the nature of iron ore deposits in the western part of the Donetsk basin” (ib., 1882 ),
• “Comments on ore deposits in the southern part of the Taganrog district” (ib., 1895 ),
• “On the Nummulite Tier of the Crimean Mountains” (Notes of the Imp. Mineralogical Society., 2nd ser., Vol. 1),
• “On the new genus Spirfer from mountain limestone” (vol. 8),
• The Ferghana Tier of Cretaceous Soil (ib.) And the major essay: “Materials for the Geology of Turkestan Territory” (at 3 o’clock, published separately).

• Karpinsky A.P., About G. D. Romanovsky. Notes of the Imper. St. Petersburg Mineralogical Society, ser. 2, no. II, part 44, 1906.
• Versilov N. In memory of G. D. Romanovsky // Mountain Journal. - 1908. - No. 4 . - S. 98-101 .
• List of articles by G. D. Romanovsky, published in various publications and published as separate works // Mining Journal. - 1908. - No. 4 . - S. 101-105 .
• Lisichkin S. M., Largest geologist and drilling technician G. D. Romanovsky, “Oil Industry”, 1953, Nos. 9 and 10.
• Lisichkin S. M., ESSAYS ON THE HISTORY OF THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE DOMESTIC OIL INDUSTRY. PRE-REVOLUTIONARY PERIOD. STATE SCIENTIFIC AND TECHNICAL PUBLISHING HOUSE OF OIL and MINING FUEL LITERATURE, Moscow, Leningrad, 1954.
• Romanovsky Gennady Danilovich. Series: Russian Central Asian scholars T.IV Tashkent. State Publishing House of the Uzbek SSR. 1961 298 p., 1 p. Portr., shooting range 3000 ek
• Lisichkin S. M., Gennady Danilovich Romanovsky (1830-1906) / S. M. Lisichkin // People of Russian Science: Essays on prominent figures in natural science and technology. Technics. - M., 1965. - S. 199-207.

• Alexander MATVEYCHUK, Drilling affairs general, OIL OF RUSSIA MAGAZINE, No. 7, JULY 2005 .