The Chemical Educator
ISSN: 1430-4171 (electronic version)
Table of
Contents
Abstract Volume 24
(2019) pp 133-134
Products of Chemistry: The Other Wyeth: Nathaniel Convers
Wyeth (1912–1990) and the Poly(ethylene terephthalate) Bottle
George B. Kauffman*
Department of Chemistry, California State University, Fresno, Fresno, CA 93740-8034, georgek@mail.fresnostate.edu
Published: 4 October
2019
Abstract. Nathaniel Convers Wyeth (1911–1990) was an
American mechanical engineer and inventor, best known for synthesizing
polyethylene terephthalate (PET), the recyclable plastic, lighter than glass
and almost unbreakable that is used widely for both carbonated and
non-carbonated drinks. It was patented in 1973. He first experimented with
polypropylene before deciding on PET. He called himself “the other Wyeth”
because his father, artist Newell Convers Wyeth, and brother, Andrew Wyeth,
were so well known. He was born near Chadds Ford, Pennsylvania and earned his
Bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering from the University of
Pennsylvania. He married Carolyn Pyle in 1937. She died in 1972. He married
Jean Grady in 1984. Wyeth joined DuPont in 1936 as a field engineer, and by
1963 he was the company’s first engineering fellow. When he retired in 1976, he
was DuPont’s first senior engineering fellow, the company’s highest technical
position. He received the 1981 Society of Plastics Engineers International Award
for Outstanding Achievement and was inducted into the Society Of the Plastics
Industry Hall of Fame in 1986. In 1990 he received DuPont’s Lavoisier Award for
Technical Achievement. He invented or co-invented 25 products. His other
innovations included improvements to manufacturing processes, plastics,
textiles, electronics, and mechanical devices.
Key Words: Chemistry and History; Nobel Prize
(*) Corresponding author.
(E-mail: georgek@mail.fresnostate.edu)
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