Leo Baekeland started working with polymers to make money and he did make a lot of money, even before he discovered the first synthetic plastic. By then, he had already developed Velox photographic film, which made him rich.
He later devoted his efforts to develop a substitute for shellac, a resin obtained from the shells of Asian lac beetles.
After a lot of trials and errors, he finally succeeded in making a resin from phenol and formaldehyde, thus making the first ever synthetic plastic. It was cheaper than celluloid and had better properties. This thermosetting material could be easily moulded into different shapes as well. He called this substance ‘bakelite’.
Picture Credit : Google