CONTENTS
• What is Plastic?
• Why Plastic?
• History of Plastic
• Present Scenario of Plastic
• Future Scenario of Plastic
• References
History of Plastic
• In 1862,
Alexander Parkes
made first plastic
“Parkesine” from
cellulose.
• Buttons, comb,
pen
• In 1868, John Wesley
Hyatt blended
nitrocellulose with
camphor and formed
“Pyroxylin”.
• Used as Billiard balls,
Shirt collars, eyeglass
frames and pen
housings.
• In 1909, Dr. Leo
Baekeland invented
“Bakelite”.
• Phenol-formaldehyde
resins were called
Bakelite.
• First totally synthetic
plastic (1907)
• Replaced rubber for
insulation in electrics
• In 1920, German Hermann Staudinger
published his theories on “poly addition”.
• Nine year later published the
polymerization of polystyrene.
• 1930’s research on
polymer chains at
DuPont Chemical
Department
• Published theory of
poly-condensation
• Invented Neoprene
and Nylon
Present Scenario Of Plastic
• Plastic used as “artificial hip”.
• The plastic liner is made from Ultra High
Molecular Weight Polyethylene and acts
like a bearing.
• The UHMWPE is extremely tough,
abrasion resistant and has a very low
coefficient of friction.
• Automobile exterior body panel. Example
Saturn by General Motors.
• Telephone wires
• Cell phone bodies
• Products like:
• Nylon (Ropes, tent and parachute straps,
belts, etc.)
• Teflon (Polytetrafluoroethylene
(PTFE),First used for artillery shell covers)
Future Scenario Of Plastic
• 3-D Body Part Printing: Researchers are
using a layered assembly manufacturing
technique—called "3-D printing"—to
create medical devices and implants using
plastics.
• Bacteria-Resistant Plastics: These plastics
have "non-stick" surfaces that bacteria
aren't attracted to, which could help
prevent contamination from bacteria
"biofilms."
• OLEDs (Organic Light-Emitting Diodes)
are used for the illumination of mobile
phone, PDA and e-book reader displays –
with polymers as the source of
illumination.
References
• inventors.about.com/library/inventors/blpla
stic.htm
• http://blog.eun.org/futurenergia/2011/03/w
hat_is_the_future_of_plastics.html
• www.lle.mdx.ac.uk/site/docs/dt/Historyofpl
astics.html
• www.americanplasticscouncil.org/benefits/
about_plastics/history.html
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