PVC,or polyvinyl chloride, is all around us. It is used in PVC wall panels, PVC guttering, PVC ceiling cladding, and more. PVC sheets are used a lot in the building trade because they are low cost and durable, and they have been used to replace a lot of metal sheets which used only to last for a few years before becoming corroded. You can be certain that PVC is not going to rust!
PVC seems to be a product of only the last forty or fifty years, but in fact it was discovered back in 1872 by a German chemist named Eugen Baumann. However, it wasn’t patented until 1914 when Friedrich Klatte began polymerisation of vinyl chloride with sunlight. In 1926, Waldo Semon in the US invented plasticised polyvinyl chloride which is now known just as vinyl or PVC and is very similar to rubber. Even then, it wasn’t used for anything until the 1930’s when the first commercial use was in shock absorber seals. It was then used to manufacture the first synthetic tyres.
Today, the largest market is actually PVC pipes which are cheaper and easier to install than metal ones. Of course, it is also used considerably in PVC wall cladding and particularly in PVC cladding for kitchens because it is super hygienic and very easy to clean. PVC cladding sheets are also used extensively in laboratories, operating theatres, pubs, hotels, public sector buildings, and more, for the same reasons.
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