This year marks the 75th anniversary of the invention of PTFE, later named and trademarked as DuPont Teflon™. The "accidental invention" of Roy Plunkett, a DuPont chemist, is a fluoropolymer that is now used in virtually every manufacturing industry, service industry, military, and many medical applications.
It has become an essential part of our everyday lives in the most unassuming of ways. While researching new, safer chlorofluorocarbon refrigerants in 1938, Plunkett had tetrafluoroethylene gas stored in containers at dry-ice temperatures. When he opened a container, none of the gas came out. Instead, a white powder had formed inside, which was later found to be the polymer of tetrafluoroethylene (polyetrafluoroethylene), known today as Teflon™.
Further development of fluoropolymers included the discovery of these other widely used fluoropolymers, ETFE, PFA, and FEP. DuPont is still innovating today with their fluoropolymers.
The impact of Teflon™ is felt in most aspects of everyday life. Fluoropolymers are critical to new development in the fields of medicine, environmental conservation, energy solution, space exploration and civilian and military safety.