Materials in chemistry

What do ski boots, household sponges, mattresses, and insulation panels have in common? All of these products contain the plastic polyurethane. Who Developed PUR? Polyurethane was developed in 1937 by …

In everyday life, we encounter many different types of plastics: polymeric materials that are colloquially referred to as plastic or rubber. But what exactly are plastics? Plastics are organic materials …

Epoxy Resin is a sought-after material used in industry, everyday life, and even in art. It is a synthetic resin which, when mixed with a hardener, forms a thermosetting plastic. …

What do car tires and chewing gum have in common? Both contain the same type of rubber: butyl rubber. The development of butyl rubber began in 1825 with the discovery …

The term “profile” has several different meanings in the English language. It can refer to the side view of a shape, a characteristic appearance, or the data of a user …

Many commercially available plastics are, by nature, hard and brittle at room temperature. Only the addition of special additives, known as plasticizers, enables their processing and use for everyday consumer …

About 100 years ago, the production of purely synthetic plastics—made exclusively from artificial components—began. In 1907, the Belgian chemist Leo Hendrik Baekeland (1863–1944) developed a process for producing and processing …

When hearing the term glass, most people first think of drinking glasses or window panes. But what kind of material is it actually? Glass is an amorphous solid that is …

Persistent Organic Pollutants (POPs) are organic compounds that are harmful to humans and animals and degrade only very slowly in the environment. They contaminate air, soil and water and can …

The material silicone rubber offers a wide range of excellent technical properties and is therefore used in many different applications. But what can this elastomer do—the one found in clothing, …