Martin van Creveld
Israeli military historian and theorist
Leo Baekeland
Belgium American inventor (1863-1944)
Leo Hendrik Baekeland was a Belgian chemist. Educated in Belgium and Germany, he spent most of his career in the United States.
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About the Leo Baekeland
Leo Hendrik Baekeland was a Belgian chemist. Educated in Belgium and Germany, he spent most of his career in the United States. He is best known for the inventions of Velox photographic paper in 1893, and Bakelite in 1907. He has been called “The Father of the Plastics Industry” for his invention of Bakelite, an inexpensive, non-flammable and versatile plastic, which marked the beginning of the modern plastics industry.
5 Quotes by Leo Baekeland
- 1.
I also served on many government committees.
Leo BaekelandBelgium American inventor (1863-1944)
- 2.
I was trying to make something really hard, but then I thought I should make something really soft instead, that could be molded into different shapes. That was how I came up with the first plastic. I called it Bakelite.
Leo BaekelandBelgium American inventor (1863-1944)
- 3.
In 1893 I founded a chemical company which I ran until 1899.
Leo BaekelandBelgium American inventor (1863-1944)
- 4.
Well, it was kind of an accident, because plastic is not what I meant to invent. I had just sold photograph paper to Eastman Kodak for 1 million dollars.
Leo BaekelandBelgium American inventor (1863-1944)
- 5.
Then I was president of the Bakelite Corporation from 1910 to 1930.
Leo BaekelandBelgium American inventor (1863-1944)