Teflon

On April 6, 1938, Roy Plunkett discovered a waxy solid with amazing properties – by accident. He opened the valve to a container of tetrafluoroethylene, but the gas did not come out. When he cut the canister open, he found a white powdery substance. The tetrafluoroehylene had polymerized into polytetrafluoroethylene – which was patented by DuPont Company in 1941 and became known to the world as Teflon in 1944.

Teflon is resistant to corrosion, has low surface friction, high heat resistance, and very unreactive. Because of its remarkable properties, Teflon began to be used as a non-stick coating for pans and other cookware. Unknown to most people, Teflon was also used in the Manhattan Project in WWII. It also coats special bullets, referred to as “cop-killer” bullets, because the Teflon supposedly eases the bullet’s passage through body armor.

Telfon also contains electrical properties which make it suitable for use as an insulator. It is also used in sliding mechanical parts, such as bearings and gears. It can also be found in the wiper blades of your car, in durable fingernail polishes, and in shatterproof light bulbs. Teflon has even been used to make stain-proof clothes and coat eyeglass lenses.

The same material has helped to send images back from the Mars Rovers. It is used to coat the cables attached to the cameras. Thanks to Teflon, the cables show no signs of deterioration.