Hercule-Progres turbine. 19th-century illustration of a disassembled US-French Hercule-Progres water turbine. Parts of the distributor are shown. Water turbines harness the power of moving water as it rotates the blades (left). A variety of designs were developed in the 19th century. This one had a guaranteed efficiency of between 80 and 85 percent. Artwork from 'Moteurs' (1911) by French civil engineer Max de Nansouty (1854-1913), part of the 'Les merveilles de la science' series of 1867-1891 by Louis Figuier.