When German chemist Otto Bayer was looking for new macromolecules during the 1930s he began to experiment with isocyanates. Some of his professional colleagues thought he was crazy!
In 1937, however, he won the skeptics over with his patent for a new and valuable product. Bayer had brought together isocyanates and polyols as baking additives. When the 2nd World War broke out, the German authorities and the military started to look for new and better varieties of rubber. So, they investigated the properties of elastic polyurethane moulded plastic.
One of these tests went wrong, but the result inspired those involved and showed them the path that they should be following. Some of the moulded items came out full of bubbles, and the testing authority made the sarcastic comment: at least it would be useful for manufacturing fake Swiss cheese! Otto Bayer did not hesitate for long and wanted to find out all about this fake cheese. In subsequent tests, he discovered polyurethane foam.
In the war years of 1943 and 1944, polyurethane was used for propeller blades, landing flaps and skids for aircraft - but it was all top secret. During the post-war years, polyurethane became an unstoppable success. It was used for mattresses, furniture padding, and thermal insulation, and still is today. It is also used in paints and varnishes formulations and in adhesives, as well as for sports wear fabrics such as Lycra®.
print
