Researched
Vulcanized Rubber
Goodyear's heating of rubber with sulphur (1839) makes it elastic, durable and weatherproof.
Open in the interactive tree →Natural rubber turned sticky in heat and brittle in cold; Charles Goodyear found the sulphur process (patented 1844, Hancock in Britain 1843). Vulcanised rubber gave seals, hoses and cable insulation and, with Dunlop's inflatable tyre of 1888, the tyres of bicycles and cars.
Prerequisites
Unlocks
- Safety Bicycle & Pneumatic Tyre1885-1888Dunlop's pneumatic tyre needs vulcanised rubber
- Automobile1886Car tyres, belts and hoses are vulcanised rubber