Bakelite telephone. Dial telephone with bakelite casing. Bakelite, the first plastic to be used for widespread commercial purposes, was discovered in


Bakelite telephone. Dial telephone with bakelite casing. Bakelite, the first plastic to be used for widespread commercial purposes, was discovered in the 1920s while the Belgian chemist Leo Baekeland was researching synthetic varnishes in the USA. It is a thermosetting plastic (one that does not melt once it has been heated and set) and it is a good insulator. This made it the ideal material to use in electrical devices like telephones and radios.


Size: 5172px × 3400px
Photo credit: © VICTOR de SCHWANBERG/SCIENCE PHOTO LIBRARY / Alamy / Afripics
License: Licensed
Model Released: No

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