The History of Teflon

Today it is best known for its role in making non-stick pans, but did you know that Teflon was originally created by accident? In 1938, Roy Plunkett was trying to create a new refrigerant for his job at the DuPont chemical factory and accidentally created Teflon instead! For the first few years after its invention, Teflon was primarily used for coating various valves, seals, and pipes as part of the Manhattan Project. It wasn’t until 1954 that a French engineer named Marc Grogoire and his wife discovered that Teflon could be used to create nonstick cookware and the Teflon pan was born!