Vulcanite
The vulcanisation of natural rubber
with sulphur was discovered by Charles Goodyear
in the USA about 1839 and was patented by Hancock
in England in May 1843 and Goodyear in USA in
June. Patents for hard rubber (vulcanite) were
granted to Hancock in England in 1843 and to
Nelson Goodyear (brother of Charles) in USA in
1851.
Mouldings in vulcanite (hard rubber) were
exhibited by both Hancock and Goodyear at the
Great Exhibition of 1851.
The material is most commonly black in colour and
has been used to make combs, buttons, vesta cases,
jewellery, fountain pens, pipe stems (both plain
and decorative), musical instruments, etc.; it
was also widely used as an electrical insulator
and for chemically resistant linings. A reddish
colour was used for denture plates until
superseded by celluloid and acrylic. A reddish
material rippled with black was popular about
1930 for fountain pen and pencil barrels.
It was originally based on natural rubber but
since the 1930s has been based wholly or partly
on various synthetic rubbers.
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