Teflon and Gore-tex: On the 80th anniversary of the discovery of Teflon,Plastiquarian celebrates these two Fluoropolymers

摘要

Teflon is the quintessential American product.It was discovered by accident and like many such discoveries was at first simply a creation in search of a purpose.Versions of it are in our frying pans and popcorn bags,our medical devices and electronic gadgets,our pruning shears and our cars.It is ubiquitous and essential.It is part of our vocabulary,uttered with both envy and exasperation to describe politicians and Mafia dons.It even helped win World War II.PTFE,or polytetrafluoroethylene,Teflon,was discovered in the DuPont laboratory in 1938 by Dr.Roy Plunkett.Plunkett held a Bachelor of Arts degree,a Master of Science degree,and his PhD in organic chemistry when he went to work at the DuPont research laboratories in Edison,New Jersey.He was working with gases related to Freon~R refrigerants when he stumbled upon PTFE.