Gasification was an important and common technology during the 19th and early 20th century. Town gas produced from coal was widely used, mainly for lighting purposes. When stationary internal combustion engines based on the Otto cycle became available in the 1870s, they began displacing steam engines as prime movers in many works requiring stationary motive power. Adoption accelerated after the Otto engine's patent expired in 1886. The potential and practical applicability of gasification to internal combustion engines were well understood from the earliest days of their development.