Plastics

One Word: Plastics

A 2009 study by Anthony L. Andrady and Mike A. Neal titled "Applications and Societal Benefits of Plastics" examines the history and uses of plastics:

Humans have benefited from the use of polymers since approximately 1600 BC when the ancient Mesoamericans first processed natural rubber into balls, figurines and bands. In the intervening years, man has relied increasingly on plastics and rubber, first experimenting with natural polymers, horn, waxes, natural rubber and resins, until the nineteenth century, when the development of modern thermoplastics began. 

In 1839, Goodyear invented vulcanized rubber, and Eduard Simon, a German apothecary, discovered polystyrene (PS). Developmental work continued through the nineteenth century on natural/synthetic polymers producing such notables as celluloid for billiard balls, polyvinyl chloride (PVC), which is used in myriad applications, and viscose (rayon) for clothing. Development of modern plastics really expanded in the first 50 years of the twentieth century, with at least 15 new classes of polymers being synthesized. The success of plastics as a material has been substantial; they have proved versatile for use in a range of types and forms, including natural polymers, modified natural polymers, thermosetting plastics, thermoplastics and, more recently, biodegradable plastics. Plastics have a range of unique properties: they can be used at a very wide range of temperatures, are chemical- and light-resistant and they are very strong and tough, but can be easily worked as a hot melt. It is this range of properties together with their low cost that has driven the annual worldwide demand for plastics to reach 245 million tonnes today…. 

Even at a somewhat conservative annual growth rate of 5 per cent, a continuation of this trend suggests that at least 308 million tonnes of plastics will be consumed annually worldwide by 2010.
The consumption patterns of the five most widely used types of plastics in their different application sectors appear to be consistent in the developed regions of the world. Well over a third of consumption is in packaging applications (with common products such as containers and plastic bags) and another third or more in building products including common products such as plastic pipes or vinyl cladding. In developing countries, usage patterns may differ slightly; for instance, in India, 42 per cent of resin consumption was reported to be in the packaging sector. Automotive applications and toy/furniture manufacture use smaller but significant volumes of plastics. Use of plastics in the developing world is increasing as the lower unit cost and improvements in performance specifications continually promote its substitution for materials such as paper, metals, wood and glass. 

Plastics clearly constitute an important component of the range of materials used in modern society. Almost all aspects of daily life involve plastics or rubber in some form or the other. These include clothing and footwear, together with products for use in food and public health applications. Over 40 million tonnes of plastics were converted into textile fibre (mainly nylon, polyester and acrylics) worldwide for use in apparel manufacture. Polycotton clothing contains high levels of PET plastic; high-performance clothing is almost exclusively plastics—polyesters, fluoropolymers and nylons. Fleece clothing is 100 per cent plastic (PET) and can be made from recycled PET. Most footwear also relies heavily on plastics; the footbed and outsoles are made from polyurethane or other elastomeric material while the uppers might be made of vinyl or other synthetic polymer.
Plastics also deliver many public health benefits. They facilitate clean drinking water supplies and enable medical devices ranging through surgical equipment, drips, aseptic medical packaging and blister packs for pills. They provide packaging that reduces food wastage, for instance in the use of modified atmosphere packaging that prolongs the life of meat and vegetables….

As suggested by the futurist Hammond in his recent publication ‘The World in 2030’, the speed of technological development is accelerating exponentially and, for this reason, by the year 2030, it will seem as if a whole century's worth of progress has taken place in the first three decades of the twenty-first century. In many ways, life in 2030 will be unrecognizable compared with life today. During this time, plastics will play a significantly increased role in our lives. Plastics are already becoming ‘smart’ and will likely serve numerous important roles in future living, including human tissue or even organ transplants, key materials used in ultra-low-emission lightweight cars and aircraft, superior insulation for homes that run on photovoltaic technology based on plastic collectors, reusable electronic graphic media for books or magazines, smart packaging that monitors food content continuously for signs of spoilage and high-efficiency solid-state lighting based on plastic organic diode technology. As petroleum reserves become more limited, new varieties of plastics are likely to increasingly be made from renewable biomass. These will contribute to the already extensive array of mechanical and aesthetic performance properties that plastics are well known for. Any future scenario where plastics do not play an increasingly important role in human life therefore seems unrealistic. Source

A portrait of British scientist Alexander Parkes (1813-1890). Parkes developed the first synthetic plastic in 1855; it bears his name: Parkesine.  Source

Following Parkes work, the next big step in the development of modern plastics was the work of this guy, Belgian-born Leo Baekeland. He too created a plastic that still holds his name, Bakelite, which was the first plastic that kept a constant shape after being molded, as well as being the first plastic that was completely synthetic in its nature. Source

The chemical structure of Bakelite. Source

These early plastics quickly acquired practical everyday uses., including the Bakelite radio above.  Other early uses included whistles, cameras, telephones, and buttons. Source

In this case, plastic served as a replacement for ivory. These celluloid dice and chip were much cheaper to manufacture than the ivory they would have been made from in the past. Source

In her book Plastic: A Toxic Love Story, Susan Freinkel discusses some of effects of our interaction with plastic over time.

Plastics freed us from the confines of the natural world, from the material constraints and limited supplies that had long bounded human activity. That new elasticity unfixed social boundaries as well. The arrival of these malleable and versatile materials gave producers the ability to create a treasure trove of new products while expanding opportunities for people of modest means to become consumers. Plastics held out the promise of a new material and cultural democracy. The comb, that most ancient of personal accessories, enabled anyone to keep that promise close…. 

Families gathered around Bakelite radios (to listen to programs sponsored by the Bakelite Corporation), drove Bakelite-accessorized cars, kept in touch with Bakelite phones, washed clothes in machines with Bakelite blades, pressed out wrinkles with Bakelite-encased irons—and, of course, styled their hair with Bakelite combs. "From the time that a man brushes his teeth in the morning with a Bakelite-handled brush until the moment when he removes his last cigarette from a Bakelite holder, extinguishes it in a Bakelite ashtray and falls back upon a Bakelite bed, all that he touches, sees, uses will be made of this material of a thousand purposes," Time magazine enthused in 1924 in an issue that sported Baekeland on the cover…. 

The flow of new products and applications was so constant it was soon the norm. Tupperware had surely always existed, alongside Formica counters, Naugahyde chairs, red acrylic taillights, Saran wrap, vinyl siding, squeeze bottles, push buttons, Barbie dolls, Lycra bras, Wiffle balls, sneakers, sippy cups, and countless more things. Source

Today, plastic is all around us, though much of it goes to waste.  The above plastic containers, however, are being recycled. 

Indeed, though hugely economically viable and extraordinarily convenient, many groups are fighting to reduce the amount of plastics we use do to their sometimes unsafe and hugely wasteful nature. The California-based Ecology Center is one such group. Their website briefly summarizes the several of the key problems associated with plastics as follows:

Americans are generating more plastic trash than ever, and very little of it gets recycled. Plastics and their byproducts are littering our cities, oceans, and waterways, and contributing to health problems in humans and animals…. 

Some plastics we know are toxic, such as #3, which is also known as PVC or vinyl. PVC contains phthalates and heavy metals, and creates dioxins when it burns. Other plastics contain Bisphenol-A (BPA), which has been identified as a chemical that disrupts hormones. Plastics can contain thousands of possible additives, and manufacturers are not required to disclose what their recipes are. Any plastic can leach, depending on the conditions (light, heat) and what additives it includes. The Ecology Center recommends avoiding plastics when possible, particularly in toys and products for children, and products that come in contact with food or drink. Source