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Leo Hendrik Baekeland
Leo Hendrik Baekeland (1863-1944) discovered Bakelite in 1907. The Belgian-American, traveled to New York in 1889 in order to continue his study of chemistry on a fellowship, which also allowed him to visit universities in England, Scotland and Germany. After the fellowship, Professor Charles F. Chandler of Columbia University was able to persuade Baekeland to stay in the US and recommended him for a position at a New York photographic supply house. The experience of working as an independent consultant led him to invent Velox, an improved photographic paper. Baekeland's first objective was to find a replacement for shellac. Chemists had began to recognize that many of the natural resins and fibres useful for coatings, adhesives, woven fabrics, and the like were polymers. Chemists and others began to search for combinations of reagent that would react to form synthetic polymers. Baekeland first produced a shellac called "Novolak" which never became a market success. By carefully controlling the pressure and temperature, he produced a polymer that could produce a hard mouldable plastic when mixed with fillers. Bakelite, then was soon found to have many uses and has been developing ever since.
Leo Hendrik Baekeland (1863-1944) discovered Bakelite in 1907. The Belgian-American, traveled to New York in 1889 in order to continue his study of chemistry on a fellowship, which also allowed him to visit universities in England, Scotland and Germany. After the fellowship, Professor Charles F. Chandler of Columbia University was able to persuade Baekeland to stay in the US and recommended him for a position at a New York photographic supply house. The experience of working as an independent consultant led him to invent Velox, an improved photographic paper. Baekeland's first objective was to find a replacement for shellac. Chemists had began to recognize that many of the natural resins and fibres useful for coatings, adhesives, woven fabrics, and the like were polymers. Chemists and others began to search for combinations of reagent that would react to form synthetic polymers. Baekeland first produced a shellac called "Novolak" which never became a market success. By carefully controlling the pressure and temperature, he produced a polymer that could produce a hard mouldable plastic when mixed with fillers. Bakelite, then was soon found to have many uses and has been developing ever since.