Overview: January/February 2018: “A man who was 20 years ahead of his time”: the polymer pioneer Fritz Klatte

20/02/2018

Dr Fritz Klatte, one of the pioneers of plastics chemistry, died on 11. February 1934. The patents he obtained in 1912 and 1913 formed the basis for the first thermoplastic polymers, particularly polyvinyl chloride (PVC). Klatte did not live to experience their global success – his death at the age of 53 meant that others enjoyed the benefits of his research and that his reputation faded at times.