Editing Fiberglass (section)

== History ==
Glass fibers have been produced for centuries, but the earliest patent was awarded to the Prussian inventor [[Hermann Hammesfahr]] (1845–1914) in the U.S. in 1880.<ref>Mitchell, Steve (November 1999). "The birth of fiberglass boats". The Good Ole Boat.</ref><ref>"Entry for US 232122 A (14-Sep-1880)". US Patent Publication. Retrieved 9 October 2013.</ref>

[[Mass production]] of glass strands was [[Serendipity|accidentally discovered]] in 1932 when [[Games Slayter]], a researcher at [[Owens-Illinois]], directed a jet of compressed air at a stream of molten glass and produced fibers. A patent for this method of producing [[glass wool]] was first applied for in 1933.<ref>Slayter, Games (11 November 1933). "Method & Apparatus for Making Glass Wool". {{US Patent|2133235}}.</ref> Owens joined with the Corning company in 1935 and the method was adapted by [[Owens Corning]] to produce its patented "Fiberglas" (spelled with one "s") in 1936. Originally, Fiberglas was a glass wool with fibers entrapping a great deal of gas, making it useful as an insulator, especially at high temperatures.

A suitable resin for combining the fiberglass with a plastic to produce a composite material was developed in 1936 by [[DuPont]]. The first ancestor of modern polyester resins is [[Cyanamid]]'s resin of 1942. [[Peroxide]] curing systems were used by then.<ref>{{cite web |last= Marsh |first= George |title= 50 years of reinforced plastic boats |work= reinforcedplastics |publisher= Elsevier Ltd |date= 8 Oct 2006 |url= http://www.reinforcedplastics.com/view/1461/50-years-of-reinforced-plastic-boats/ |access-date= 2 February 2015 |archive-date= 15 March 2014 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20140315125903/http://www.reinforcedplastics.com/view/1461/50-years-of-reinforced-plastic-boats/ |url-status= dead }}</ref> With the combination of fiberglass and resin the gas content of the material was replaced by plastic. This reduced the insulation properties to values typical of the plastic, but now for the first time, the composite showed great strength and promise as a structural and building material. Many glass fiber composites continued to be called "fiberglass" (as a generic name) and the name was also used for the low-density glass wool product containing gas instead of plastic.

Ray Greene of Owens Corning is credited with producing the first composite boat in 1937 but did not proceed further at the time because of the brittle nature of the plastic used. In 1939 the Soviet Union was reported to have constructed a passenger boat of plastic materials, and the United States a fuselage and wings of an aircraft.<ref>"Notable Progress – the use of plastics", ''Evening Post'', Wellington, New Zealand, Volume CXXVIII, Issue 31, 5 August 1939, p. 28</ref> The first car to have a fiberglass body was a 1946 prototype of the [[Stout Scarab]], but the model did not enter production.<ref>{{cite news| last = Hobart| first = Tasmania| title = Car of the future in plastics| newspaper = The Mercury| pages = 16| date = 27 May 1946}}
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