Who was the first person to vulcanize rubber?

           Have you heard of Goodyear tyres? Goodyear is a leading tyre manufacturer in the world. This American company was named so to commemorate Charles Goodyear, an American chemist and manufacturing engineer, the man who found out that rubber could be strengthened by the process of vulcanization.

           Before vulcanization was discovered, people found it difficult to make useful products out of rubber. Rubber would get sticky at high temperatures and harden in cold climates. Goodyear accidentally dropped a piece of rubber in sulphur and he discovered that it became more stable and flexible afterwards due to some chemical change. It had more strength than before. Since then, rubber is treated with sulphur to enhance its desirable properties and this chemical treatment is known as vulcanization.

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