(Trademark) A thermosetting plastic used as electric insulators and for making plastic ware and telephone receivers etc.
Type of solid plastic.
First synthetic plastic, created by Leo Baekeland in 1909. Bakelite is hard, tough, and heatproof, and is used as an electrical insulator. It is made by the reaction of phenol with formaldehyde, producing a powdery resin that sets solid when heated. Objects are made by subjecting the resin to compression molding (simultaneous heat and pressure in a mold).
It is one of the thermosetting plastics, which do not remelt when heated, and is often used for electrical fittings.