Over the course of three decades, the English businessman and inventor Thomas Hancock (1786 1865) took out sixteen patents relating to the potential applications of natural rubber. Hancock's fascination with this material, the properties of which had not been fully appreciated in England, drove him to experiment extensively with manufacturing methods. This led to the development of the mechanical process of 'mastication' and the chemical process of vulcanization, the end product of which was used by Macintosh to create waterproof garments. This illustrated account of Hancock's discoveries and...
Over the course of three decades, the English businessman and inventor Thomas Hancock (1786 1865) took out sixteen patents relating to the potential a...