Bakelite is an early plastic ... [Dr. Leo Baekeland]. This was the first synthetic plastic, and came at just the right time as it was heavily adopted for use in the electronics and the automotive ...

Plastic waste expert Mark Miodowonik explains the history of plastic and why he believes manufacturers must be responsible ...

In 1907, yet another fluke led to Leo Baekeland inadvertently inventing the first fully synthetic plastic, Bakelite, while work-ing to find a substitute for shellac. While plastic used to be an ...

It was in 1907 that the first modern plastic, bakelite, was invented. It pointed the way to a whole family of products based on synthetic polymers - that is, compounds of large molecules made up ...

A 1930 Bakelite Ashtray. Bakelite was developed in 1907-1909 by Belgian chemist Dr. Leo Baekeland. One of the first plastics made from synthetic components, Bakelite was used for its electrically ...

3. Bakelite: The material of a thousand uses In 1907, Bakelite arrived on the scene – a plastic made as a synthetic by-product of coal gas. It was brittle and dark brown, but could be formed ...

He calls it Bakelite. The objects made from this new material begin to produce the world’s first microplastics. 1930s: As softer, cheaper, newer forms of plastic are invented, usage soars.