When was the first commercially practical steam turbine developed?

The first commercially practical steam turbine was developed by the British engineer Sir Charles Algernon Parsons in 1884.12

While other inventors, such as Carl G.P. de Laval, were experimenting with turbines during the 1880s, their early designs were often limited by extremely high rotational speeds that made them unsuitable for broad commercial use. Parsons’ breakthrough was the invention of a multi-stage turbine that utilized several stages in series, allowing for the efficient extraction of thermal energy in small, controlled steps.21

Following his initial 1884 invention, Parsons refined the technology by adding a condenser in 1891 for use in electric generating stations and successfully applying it to marine propulsion in the Turbinia in 1897. By the early 20th century, these advancements established the steam turbine as the primary prime mover for both central power stations and large-scale marine applications.12