University District in Columbus in Franklin County, Ohio — The American Midwest (Great Lakes)
Roy J. Plunkett
June 26, 1910 - May 12, 1994
Photographed By William Fischer, Jr., March 15, 2009
1. Roy J. Plunkett Marker
Inscription.
Roy J. Plunkett was born in New Carlisle, Ohio, and graduated from Newton Township High School in Pleasant Hill. He received his B.A. degree from Manchester College before enrolling as a graduate student in chemistry at The Ohio State University, receiving his Ph.D. in 1936 under the direction of William Lloyd Evans in the McPherson Chemical Laboratory. On April 6, 1938, while employed by the Du Pont Company to develop a nontoxic refrigerant, Plunkett discovered Teflon®, one of the most important polymers of the 20th century. On that day, Dr. Plunkett opened a tank of gaseous tetrafluoroethylene only to find that the gas was gone--its molecules had combined with another (“polymerized”) to form a solid material. Teflon has been used on cookware, the outer skin of space suits, nose cones of space vehicles, bone replacement, and much more.
Roy J. Plunkett was born in New Carlisle, Ohio, and graduated from Newton Township High School in Pleasant Hill. He received his B.A. degree from Manchester College before enrolling as a graduate student in chemistry at The Ohio State University, receiving his Ph.D. in 1936 under the direction of William Lloyd Evans in the McPherson Chemical Laboratory. On April 6, 1938, while employed by the Du Pont Company to develop a nontoxic refrigerant, Plunkett discovered Teflon®, one of the most important polymers of the 20th century. On that day, Dr. Plunkett opened a tank of gaseous tetrafluoroethylene only to find that the gas was gone--its molecules had combined with another (“polymerized”) to form a solid material. Teflon has been used on cookware, the outer skin of space suits, nose cones of space vehicles, bone replacement, and much more.
Erected 2003 by The Ohio Bicentennial Commission, The International Paper Company Foundation, and The Ohio Historical Society. (Marker Number 48-25.)
40° 0.139′ N, 83° 0.704′ W. Marker is in Columbus, Ohio, in Franklin County. It is in the University District. Marker is on 18th Avenue, on the left when traveling east. Marker is on The Ohio State University campus, in the courtyard south of the Celeste Laboratory of Chemistry, west of the Newman and Wolfram Laboratory of Chemistry, and east of McPherson Chemical Lab. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 120 W 18th Avenue, Columbus OH 43210, United States of America. Touch for directions.
Photographed By William Fischer, Jr., March 15, 2009
2. Roy J. Plunkett Marker
The Celeste Laboratory of Chemistry is in background.
Photographed By William Fischer, Jr., March 15, 2009
3. Paul J. Flory
Nobel laureate in chemistry. OSU graduate 1931. Erected June 1985. Ohio Staters, Inc. Marker is located near the west facade of McPherson Chemical Lab.
Photographed By William Fischer, Jr.
4. Paul J. Flory Marker
Marker to left of west entrance to McPherson Chemical Lab.
Credits. This page was last revised on February 3, 2023. It was originally submitted on March 28, 2009, by William Fischer, Jr. of Scranton, Pennsylvania. This page has been viewed 1,315 times since then and 17 times this year. Photos:1, 2, 3, 4. submitted on March 28, 2009, by William Fischer, Jr. of Scranton, Pennsylvania. • Bill Pfingsten was the editor who published this page.
