All Topics  
Bakelite

 

   Email Print
   Bookmark   Link

 

Bakelite


 
 

Bakelite is a material based on the thermosettingThermosetting plastic Summary

Thermosetting plastics are polymer materials that cure, through the addition of energy, to a stronger form....
 phenol formaldehyde resinPhenol formaldehyde resin

The earliest commercial synthetic resin is based on a Phenol formaldehyde resin with the commercial name Bakelite, and is fo...
, polyoxybenzylmethylenglycolanhydride developed in 1907–1909 by Belgian-AmericanBelgian-American

Belgian-Americans are citizens of the United States who are of Belgian ancestry....
 Dr. Leo BaekelandLeo Baekeland

Leo Hendrik Baekeland was a Belgian-American chemist who invented Velox photographic paper and Bakelite, an inexpensive, non...
.
Formed by the reaction under heat and pressure of phenolPhenol Summary

Phenol, also known under an older name of carbolic acid, is a colorless crystalline solid with a typical sweet tarry o...
 (a toxic, colourless crystalline solid) and formaldehydeFormaldehyde

The chemical compound formaldehyde , is a gas with a pungent smell....
 (a simple organic compound), generally with a wood flourWood flour

Wood flour is finely pulverized wood, generally made from sapless softwoods such as pine or fir, or less frequently from har...
 filler, it was the first plasticPlastic

Plastic covers a range of synthetic or semisynthetic polymerization products....
 made from synthetic components. It was used for its electrically nonconductiveNonconductor

Nonconductors or electrical insulators are materials which lack movable electric charges, and which therefore lack a low-res...
 and heat-resistant properties in radio and telephone casings and electrical insulators, and was also used in such diverse products as kitchenwareKitchenware

Kitchenware include utensils, appliances, dishes, cookware, and so on for use in the kitchen....
, jewelleryJewellery

Jewellery is literally any piece of fine material used to adorn oneself....
, pipe stems, and children's toyFacts About Toy

A toy is something used in play by children, adults or pets....
s.
In 1993 Bakelite was designated an ACS National Historical Chemical LandmarkACS National Historical Chemical Landmarks

The ACS National Historic Chemical Landmarks Program was launched by the American Chemical Society in 1992 and has recognize...
 in recognition of its significance as the world's first synthetic plastic.

The retro appeal of old Bakelite products and labor intensive manufacturing has made them quite collectible in recent years.

Bakelite AG (a German company) claims to own the trademark in the following countries: ArgentinaArgentina

Argentina is a country in southern South America....
, AustraliaAustralia

Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland o...
, AustriaAustria

Austria is a landlocked country in central Europe....
, BangladeshBangladesh

Bangladesh, officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh, is a country in South Asia....
, BeneluxBenelux

Benelux is an economic union in Western Europe comprising three neighbouring monarchies, Belgium, the Netherlan...
, ChinaChina

China is a cultural region and ancient civilization in East Asia....
, CubaCuba

Cuba, officially the Republic of Cuba, consists of the island of Cuba, the Isle of Youth and adjacent small islands....
, EgyptEgypt

Egypt , officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a Middle Eastern country in North Africa....
, FranceFrance

France, officially the French Republic, is a country whose metropolitan territory is located in Western Europe and whi...
, GermanyGermany

Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a country in central Europe....
, Great BritainGreat Britain

Great Britain is an island lying off the northwestern coast of mainland Europe and to the east of Ireland, comprising the ma...
, GreeceGreece

GreeceGreece lies at the juncture of Europe, Asia, and Africa....
, IndiaIndia

India , officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia....
, IrelandIreland

Ireland is the third largest island in Europe....
, IsraelIsrael

Israel , officially the State of Israel, is a country in Western Asia on the southeastern edge of the Mediterranean Se...
, ItalyItaly

Italy, officially the Italian Republic , is a Southern European country....
, LiechtensteinLiechtenstein

The Principality of Liechtenstein is a small, doubly landlocked country in Western Europe, bordered by Switzerland to its w...
, Republic of MacedoniaFacts About Republic of Macedonia

The Republic of Macedonia , often referred to as Macedonia, is a landlocked country on the Balkan peninsula in southe...
, MalaysiaMalaysia Summary

Malaysia is a federation of 13 states in Southeast Asia, formed in 1963....
, MoroccoMorocco

The Kingdom of Morocco is a country in North Africa....
, New ZealandFacts About New Zealand

New Zealand is a country in the south-western Pacific Ocean consisting of two large islands and many much smaller islands, m...
, NorwayNorway

Insert non-formatted text hereNorway is a Nordic country on the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula, bordering S...
, PakistanPakistan

Pakistan, officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan , is a country located in South Asia that overlaps with the Gre...
, SwitzerlandSwitzerland Overview

Switzerland , officially the Swiss Confederation, is a landlocked Alpine country in Central Europe....
, SingaporeSingapore

Singapore, formally the Republic of Singapore , is an island city-state and the smallest country in Southeast Asia....
, SlovakiaSlovakia

Slovakia is a landlocked republic in Central Europe with population of more than five million....
, SpainSpain

Spain, officially the Kingdom of Spain , is a European parliamentary monarchy....
, Sri LankaSri Lanka

Sri Lanka, officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka , is a tropical island nation off the southeast c...
, South AfricaSouth Africa Summary

The Republic of South Africa is a country located at the southern tip of the African continent....
, TaiwanTaiwan Summary

Taiwan is an island in East Asia, but the term "Taiwan" is also commonly used to collectively refer to the territories gove...
, ThailandThailand

The Kingdom of Thailand is a country in Southeast Asia, bordering Laos and Cambodia to the east, the Gulf of Thailand and Ma...
, Czech RepublicCzech Republic

The Czech Republic , a member state of the European Union , is a landlocked country in Central Europe....
, TunisiaTunisia

Tunisia , officially the Tunisian Republic , is a country situated on the Mediterranean coast of North Africa....
, HungaryHungary Summary

Hungary , officially the Republic of Hungary , is a landlocked country in Central Europe, bordered by Austria, Slovaki...
.

History

Bakelite Corp. was formed in 1922 from the consolidation of three companies. General Bakelite Co., Condensite Corp. and Redmanol Chemical Products Company, an early plastics manufacturer formed in 1913 by Chemist L.H.Baekeland. The American Catalin Corporation acquired the Bakelite formulas in 1927 and currently manufactures Bakelite cast resins.

Bakelite Limited was formed in 1926 from the amalgamation of three suppliers of phenol formaldehyde materials: the Damard Lacquer Company Limited of BirminghamBirmingham Summary

Birmingham is a city and metropolitan borough in the West Midlands....
; Mouldensite Limited of Darley Dale and Redmanol Chemical Products Company of LondonLondon

London is the capital city of England and of the United Kingdom....
. Around 1928 a new factory opened in TyseleyTyseley

Tyseley is a district in the southern half of the city of Birmingham, England, near the Coventry Road and the districts of S...
, Birmingham, England. (The building was demolished in 1998.) The company was acquired by the Union Carbide and Carbon CorpUnion Carbide

Union Carbide Corporation, headquartered in Danbury, Connecticut, is a United States chemical manufacturer, now a subsidiary...
oration in 1939.

Properties

Phenolics are seldom used in general consumer products today due to the cost and complexity of production and their brittle nature. An exception to the overall decline is the use in small precision-shaped components where their specific properties are required, such as moulded disc brake cylinders, saucepan handles, electrical plugs and switches and electrical iron parts. Today, Bakelite is manufactured and produced in the form of sheets, rods and tubes for hundreds of industrial applications in the electronics, power generation and aerospace industries, and under a variety of commercial brand names.


Phenolic sheet is a hard, dense material made by applying heat and pressure to layers of paper or glass cloth impregnated with synthetic resin. These layers of laminations are usually of cellulose paper, cotton fabrics, synthetic yarn fabrics, glass fabrics or unwoven fabrics. When heat and pressure are applied to the layers, a chemical reaction (polymerization) transforms the layers into a high-pressure thermosetting industrial laminated plastic. When rubbed, original Bakelite has a telltale odor.

Bakelite Phenolic is produced in dozens of commercial grades and with various additives to meet diverse mechanical, electrical and thermal requirements. Some common types include:

  • PAPER REINFORCED PHENOLIC NEMA XX per MIL-I-24768 PBG Normal electrical applications, moderate mechanical strength, continuous operating temperature of 250°F.


  • CANVAS REINFORCED PHENOLIC NEMA C per MIL-I-24768 TYPE FBM NEMA CE per MIL-I-24768 TYPE FBG Good mechanical and impact strength with continuous operating temperature of 250°F.


  • LINEN REINFORCED PHENOLIC NEMA L per MIL-I-24768 TYPE FBI NEMA LE per MIL-I-24768 TYPE FEI Good mechanical and electrical strength. Recommended for intricate high strength parts. Continuous operating temperature 250°F.


  • NYLON REINFORCED PHENOLIC NEMA N-1 per MIL-I-24768 TYPE NPG Superior electrical properties under humid conditions, fungus resistant, continuous operating temperature of 160°F.

Patents

  • (After following the patent link, click on the "Images" button to view the patent. You will need a TIFFTagged Image File Format

    Tagged Image File Format is a file format for mainly storing images, including photographs and line art....
     (.tif) viewer to view the patent.)

Applications and usage

Although not extensively used as an industrial manufacturing material any more, in the past Bakelite was used in a myriad of applications, such as saxophoneFacts About Saxophone

The saxophone is a conical-bored instrument of the woodwind family, usually made of brass and played with a single-reed mou...
 mouthpieces, camerasBrownie (camera)

Brownie was the name of a long-running and extremely popular series of simple and inexpensive cameras made by Kodak....
, solid-body electric guitarsFacts About Rickenbacker

Rickenbacker is an electric guitar manufacturer....
, rotary-dial telephoneTelephone

The telephone or phone is a telecommunications device which is used to transmit and receive sound across distance....
s, early machine gunMachine gun

A machine gun is a fully-automatic mounted or portable firearm, usually designed to fire rifle cartridges in quick successio...
s, and appliance casings. It was at one point considered for the manufacture of coins, due to a shortage of traditional manufacturing material.`

See also

  • Ansco pandaAnsco panda

    The Ansco Panda was a simple child's bakelite box camera made by the Ansco camera corporation of Binghamton, New York in the...
     — children's Bakelite box camera
  • BaykoBayko

    Bayko was a construction toy sold in Britain over the period from 1934 to 1967....
     — A construction set toy in which most of the parts were made of Bakelite
  • CatalinCatalin

    Catalin is a brand name for a thermosetting plastic popular in the 1930s....
  • NovotextFacts About Novotext

    Novotext is a trade name for cotton textile-phenol epoxy resin, essentially cotton-reinforced Bakelite....
  • Phenol formaldehyde resinFacts About Phenol formaldehyde resin

    The earliest commercial synthetic resin is based on a Phenol formaldehyde resin with the commercial name Bakelite, and is fo...
  • Phenolic resinPhenolic resin

    Phenolic resin can include any of various synthetic thermosetting resins, obtained by the reaction of phenols with simple al...


External links

  • in Basel, Switzerland: one of the world's largest private collections can be visited in a special exhibition http://www.15squaredevergennes.com in Paris until August 2, 2008