This book was planned and drafted even before the oil crisis at the end of 1973 drama- tically highlighted the importance of research in the field of power production. This turn of events has by no means detracted from the value of the material presented. On the contrary, research on the rational exploitation of energy resources has gained in importance. The development of MHD generators is one of the fields which, it is hoped, will make an important contribution. It is nowadays no longer sufficient, however, just to perform good work. The national treasury, i.e. the taxpayer, allocates...