Ira Shapiro, age 11 ., Winston‑Salem, N.Co, for his question;
Is it true that fountain pens are made from milk?
This story begins with a billiard ball and an elephant's tusk. It has led to thousands of new everyday conveniences. For we learned to manufacture substitutes for wood, pottery, china, sponge, glue, bristles, cloth, rubber and even jewels. Some of these substitutes improve on natures materials. Those that are less durable than nature’s fabrics serve a purpose and can be cheaply replaced; The story of this new branch of science makes us proud to live in modern times. That fountain pen made from milk is, of course, part of the fascinating story of plastics.
Billiard balls used to be made of solid ivory, The problem was to get enough elephant tusks to make them. About fifty years ago the shortage became so severe that the manufacturers offered $10,000 to anyone who invented a substitute for ivory4 The prize was won by John and Isaiah Hyatt of the U.S. They invented casein plastic made from the protein in milk. This was around the year 1900.
The Hyatt brothers went on to mold their lightweight plastic into other objects. They made dental plates and the side curtains for early automobiles. Celluloid, made from cellulose and nitrates, had been on the market some 30 years. But it was highly inflammable. The casein plastic was not, So the Hyatts used their plastic to replace those old‑style celluloid collars, By 1914, casein plastics were known as galalith; or milk stone.. Galalith was used to make the outer shells of fountain pens. The manufacturers thought so highly of it that they offered a lifetime guarantee with every pen they sold.
Since then, we have developed countless recipes for making plastics, each to serve a special purpose, However, there are only about 30 basic recipes for making plastics. These groups are named from the raw materials from which they are made. The casein plastics, still made from milk protein, form one of the basic recipes used with countless variations.
Plastics are resins or gelatin substances, They are brewed from cheap and plentiful raw materials. The casein group is easily molded. The buttons on your shirt are most likely made of casein plastic. Like all other plastic recipes, the caseins are constantly being improved. For the vast industry of man‑made or synthetic substances is new and fast growing, Whenever know what new miracles and conveniences in plastic are in store for us.
About 3% of milk is casein. It is suspended as minute white particles in the liquid. Casein is the gooey binder necessary for turning milk into cheese, Rennet is used with the milk and the casein is separated and dried in granule form. Moisture and dyes are added and the mixture is kneaded It is heated and rotated in high speed cylinders. The soft dough is pressed into molds and steeped in a solution of formaldehyde, Lastly, the molded plastic goes through a longs slow drying process.
Casein plastics can be made to look like horn and bone. It can be colored gayly with dyes, Color tones can be blended to make casein plastics that look like marble, And the wel1s of some fountain pens are still made of casein plastic which is made from the casein protssn in milk.