After high school, Alexandru Ciurcu studied Law at the University of Vien (1873), but he also continued to study technical sciences. Back in Romania, as a journalist, he attacked the Government, and was forced to flee to Paris, France. There Alexandru Ciurcu met an old friend, Just Buisson, also a journalist with a passion for technical subjects. Together, they designed and built an engine based on the propulsive force due to the gases produced by combustion in a small chamber. The chamber was smaller than any other gas generator of its time. The engine consisted of a 2 liter volume recipient that had a hole of 3 mm diameter. The burning gases produced an internal pressure of 10-15 atmospheres.
On August 13, 1886, they successfully operated their engine on a boat that sailed for 15 minutes against the flow of river Sena. It was the first boat with an reactive engine.
The review "La Nature", no. 735 from 2 July 1887 published "Experience du propulseur a reaction du M.M. Just Buisson et Alexandru Ciurcu" with a preface by G. Tissandier and a picture of powered boat. At 12 October 1886 they received French patent no. 179001 on "Reactive-boat. Reactiv engine", and later patents from other countries: Germany (1886), England (1882), Belgium (1887) and Italy (1887).
In December 16, 1886, they built another engine, with a larger boiler in order to develope a higher pressure and increased velocity of exhausted gases. Unfortunately, the engine exploded, killing Just Buisson and a third young man who was steering the boat. Alexandru Ciurcu was put on trial for murder, but found not guilty.
At the request of a Mr. Gaston Tissandier, Ciurcu made other experiments on reactive engine, at the Scoran-Livry military base. This time he was helped by Emil Sarrau and Paul Vieille (white powder inventor). They succesfully mounted the engine on a small rail wagon.
In 1890 he returned to Romania, where he became the director of the most important newspaper of his time, "Timpul" (Time), but he never experimented on technics.
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