Who Discovered Plastics?

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British scientist Alexander Parkes, in 1860, invented the first plastic material called Parkesine. He obtained this while seeking a substitute for animal horn to make objects, such as door-knobs. Parkesine was made from cellulose and camphor which are natural materials obtained from plants. An American inventor John Hyatt also discovered the same plastic in 1868 when seeking a substitute for ivory. He called it celluloid. The first plastic made from chemicals was Bakelite, which was invented by the Belgian chemist Leo Baekeland in 1907.

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