Wallace Carothers

Wallace Hume Carothers (* April 27, 1896 in Burlington, Iowa, † April 29, 1937 in Wilmington ) was an American chemist who invented the nylon and after the Carothers equation is named.

He was the oldest of four children of a teacher. His academic career began in 1924 as a faculty member at the University of Illinois. In 1926 he moved to Harvard University. 1928 established the company DuPont is a research laboratory for the development of artificial materials and plastics and Carothers was hired as director of research. In 1929 he was elected as the first industrial chemist in the U.S. Academy of Sciences. In April 1930 his team discovered the neoprene, a synthetic rubber, and synthesized the first polyester. 1934 carried out experiments with polyamides to nylon. About the Name of nylons exists the legend that Carothers should have recognized that the excellent properties of the fiber discovered by him polyamide could threaten the Japanese silk monopoly. From his exclamation " Now, you lousy old nipponese " said to have been formed the word nylon.

Carothers, from which it was believed that he was manic-depressive, committed suicide in 1937 by ingesting cyanide.

Carothers was an avid reader of poetry and classical music lovers.