Bakelite 100 Years Old

[Steve - K4HX]

From the ARRL Letter:

Bakelite Patent Awarded 100 Years Ago

Radio amateurs of a certain age are more familiar than most newcomers with the trade name Bakelite, which derives its name from its inventor Leo Baekeland, who developed Bakelite phenolic resin, the first thermosetting plastic, in 1907. His process patent for making insoluble products of phenol and formaldehyde -- the components of Bakelite -- was filed that year, and Baekeland was awarded a patent a century ago come this December. Bakelite found a place in numerous technologies, including early ham gear and radios, widely employed as an insulating material.

Once a Bakelite product is formed, it will not change shape or melt under heat. In compression molding, the resin is generally combined with fillers such as wood or asbestos before it's pressed into the ultimate product shape.Tube sockets often were constructed using Bakelite. It later found its way into such products as jewelry. In February 1909, Baekeland officially announced his achievement at a meeting of the New York section of the American Chemical Society.