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Barb!
PTFE, or Teflon, as you called the non-stick finish, has the same friction rating as ice, and is used in stuff you've never thought of like artificial hip joints! PTFE resists both very high and low temperatures, is impervious to attack from almost all chemicals, and doesn't conduct electricity at all.
Teflon = PTFE = polytetrafluoroethylene. It was discovered in 1938, I believe, by an American - Dr. Roy Plunkett of Du Pont while was doing refrigeration experiments. A frenchman, Mark Gregoire, was the first to use it in domestic applications. This guy marketed the first non-stick pans that he called Tefal in the mid 1950's.
Immune to almost all chemicals, including hydrochloric and nitric acids, it can only be attacked by molten sodium, molten calcium and super hot fluorine.
PTFE's chemical inertness means it does't taint the food that is cooked on it. It doesn't even affect organic tissue. It retains its flexibility at about -450 F, to a few degrees above absolute zero (500F).
Teflon's used in spacecraft, heart valves, joints and sports stadiums.
To get technical ...
The PTFE molecule consists of a long chain of carbon atoms, each one is attached to two fluorine atoms. The chemical bonds are immensely strong, which is why Teflon doesn't react with other chemicals. Trying to break these bonds is like trying to bring Yahoo down to reasonable valuations.
Teflon is made from a widely known refrigerant liquid known as Freon 22. Under a pressure of about 45 - 50 atmospheres, and in the presence of a peroxide catalyst, the freon gas undergoes a chemical change, and ya get teflon, or PTFE - in a powdery resin.
Since it doesn't melt properly, it's mixed with a binder and shaped into a mould. Then it's thrown into a high pressure and high temperature environment, causing the resin particles to fuse together to form a solid mass.
**To make teflon frying pans and such, the PTFE powder is suspended in water to form a non-stick finish which is then sprayed onto the surface of the pan and baked.
Barb, be careful what you ask.
scott
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