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HISTORY OF PLASTIC:
Bellis, Mary "Cracker Jack" Inventors at About. Retrieved
January 1, 2001 from the World Wide Web: http://inventors.about.com/library/inventors/blcrackerjacks.htm
The first man-made plastic was created by Alexander Parkes who
first publically demonstrated it at the 1862 Great International
Exhibition in London. The material called Parkesine was an organic
material derived from cellulose that once heated could be molded
and retained its shape when cooled.
Timeline of Plastics
1868 Cellulose Nitrate (Celluloid)
1900 Viscose Rayon
1909 Phenol-Formaldehyde (Bakelite)
1927 Cellulose Acetate
1933 Polyethylene
1936 Acrylic or Polymethyl Methacrylate
1938 Polystyrene
1939 Nylon
1941 Polyethylene Terephthalate
1942 Low Density Polyethylene
1942 Unsaturated Polyester
1957 Polypropylene
1964 Polyimide
1970 Thermoplastic Polyester
1978 Linear Low Density Polyethylene
1985 Liquid Crystal Polymers
Different Types of Plastics
Celluloid
Celluloid was derived from from cellulose and alcoholized camphor.
John Wesley Hyatt invented celluloid as a substitute for the ivory
in billiard balls in 1868. He first tried using collodion a natural
substance, after spilling a bottle of it and discovering that the
material dried into a tough and flexible film. However, the material
was not strong enough to be used as a billiard ball, until the
addition of camphor, a derivative of the laurel tree. The new celluloid
could be molded with heat and pressure into a durable shape. Besides
billard balls, celluloid became famous as the first flexible photographic
film used for still photography and motion pictures.
Rayon
Bakelite
Leo Hendrik Baekeland patented a "Method of Making Insoluble
Products of Phenol and Formaldehyde." Setting out to make
an insulator, he invented the first true plastic and transformed
the world. It was used to manufacture telephone handsets or costume
jewelry for example as well as engine parts and electronics.
Cellophane
Cellophane was invented by Jacques E. Brandenberger in 1908, a
Swiss textile engineer who came upon the idea for a clear, protective,
packaging film.
Marlex
Marlex ® is the tradename for crystalline polypropylene and
high-density polyethylene (HDPE) plastics invented by research
chemists Paul Hogan and Robert Banks of Phillips Petroleum.
Nylon and Neoprene
A brillant and tragic mind, Carothers was the brains behind Dupont
and the birth of synthetic fibers.
Plastic Garbage Bags
The green plastic garbage/trash bag was invented by Harry Wasyluk
of Winnipeg, and by Larry Hanson at the Union Carbide plant in
Lindsay, Ontario, in the 1950s.
Polystyrene
Polystyrene is a strong plastic created from erethylene and benzine
that can be injected, extruded or blow molded, making it a very
useful and versatile manufacturing material.
Polyurethane
Polyurethane is an organic polymer used in lycra.
Polyester or PET
This includes Dacron®, Mylar®, Melinex®, Teijin®,
and Tetoron®.
Polypropylene
Marlex® is the tradename for crystalline polypropylene.
Rubber
The invention of plastics followed the vulcanisation of natural
rubber by Charles Goodyear in the mid-1840s.
Saran Wrap (PVDC)
The origins of Saran Wrap ® film and Dow Chemical Company history.
SILLY PUTTY
A plastic that has attracted many youngsters over the years is
plastic putty, better known as SILLY PUTTY®.
Styrofoam
What we commonly call styrofoam, is actually the most recognizable
form of foam polystyrene packaging.
Teflon
Roy J. Plunkett, invented tetrafluoroethylene polymers or Teflon.
VELCRO
The birth of Velcro ®, yet another unique plastic product which
has impacted nearly all of our lives occurred in 1957.
Vinyl (PVC)
Waldo L. Semon, invented a way to make polyvinyl chloride (PVC)
useful - History of Vinyl.
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