Cyanoacrylate (super glue)
Cianoacrilato (superglue)
- Date
- 1942 (descubrimiento); 1951 (redescubierto y aplicado); 1958 (comercializado) · confidence high
- Place
- Eastman Kodak, Kingsport, Tennessee, United States
- Credited to
- Harry Coover
- Field
- Matter & energy
What was discovered
While searching for clear plastics for gun sights during World War II, Coover stumbled on a formulation that stuck to everything it touched; he initially discarded it, but rediscovered it in 1951 with Fred Joyner and recognised its potential as an instant adhesive.
B.F. Goodrich had already patented cyanoacrylates in 1947 as part of wartime materials research; Coover is credited with identifying and developing their use as an adhesive.
What it led to
- Commercial adhesive "Eastman #910" (1958)
- Super Glue and Krazy Glue brands
- Surgical use of cyanoacrylate to close wounds