History of Rubber

What is the History of Rubber and Its Development?

1. Ancient Use: Evidence suggests rubber use dates back over 2,000,000 years.

2. Vulcanization Discovery (1839): Charles Goodyear accidentally discovers vulcanization, a process of strengthening rubber, by dropping sulfur-treated rubber onto a hot stove.

3. Synthetic Rubber Invention (1879): Bouchardat invents synthetic rubber.

4. Pneumatic Tire (1882): John Boyd Dunlop creates the air-filled rubber tire, spurring increased rubber demand due to the rise of gasoline-powered cars.

5. Vulcanization Advancements (1883): George Oenslager develops a faster vulcanization method using organic accelerators.

6. Increased Demand (1890s): The expansion of motor vehicles, particularly tires, leads to a surge in rubber demand.

7. Polymerization of Methyl Isoprene (1909): Fritz Hofmann and his team succeed in polymerizing methyl isoprene.

8. First Synthetic Rubber Polymer (1910): Sergei Vasiljevich Lebedev synthesizes the first rubber polymer from butadiene.

9. Early Research by Ivan Ostromislensky (Early 20th Century): Significant research on synthetic rubber and monomers.

10. Stevenson Act and Synthetic Rubber Search (1921): The Stevenson Act forms a rubber price-regulating cartel, leading to alternative synthetic rubber exploration.

11. Rise in Synthetic Rubber Research (1925): High natural rubber prices push companies to explore synthetic rubber production.

12. Neoprene Development (1931): DuPont, under E.K. Bolton, develops the first successful synthetic rubber, neoprene.

13. First European Rubber Plant (1932): SK-1, the first rubber plant in Europe, established in Russia by Sergei Lebedev.

14. Buna Rubbers (1935): German chemists create Buna rubbers, the first series of synthetic rubbers as copolymers.

15. Sovprene Creation (1940): Russian researchers develop Sovprene, a type of synthetic rubber.

16. Ameripol (1940): B.F. Goodrich scientist Waldo Semon develops Ameripol, making synthetic rubber production more cost-effective.

17. GRS Production During WWII (By 1944): 50 factories in the US manufacture GRS (Government Rubber Styrene), exceeding pre-war natural rubber production.

18. Synthetic Rubber Boom (1941-1945): US synthetic rubber production skyrockets from 8,000 tons to 820,000 tons.

19. Post-War Developments (Early 1960s): Post-WWII, advancements continue in synthetic rubber production, with the chemical synthesis of isoprene reducing the need for natural rubber.

http://www.explainthatstuff.com/rubber.html

http://www.rma.org/about-rma/rubber-faqs/

http://www.africantyrerecyclers.com/the-benefits-of-first-world-war-was-scarcity-of-natural-rubber-and-creation-of-synthetic-rubber/

Also in Rubber Mulch Blog