WD-40: The Cold War Missile Coating Locked in a San Diego Bank Vault

Got something to say to this podcast? Send a voicemail, and you might hear yourself on the next episode!

The blue and yellow can under your sink began as a fix for a frightening aerospace problem. In 1953 the Rocket Chemical Company of San Diego was asked by Convair to stop rust on the Atlas missile, whose thin stainless steel skin doubled as the wall of its balloon tanks. With no internal frame, the rocket held its shape through pressure alone, so even minor corrosion was a threat. The answer had to creep under moisture and lift it off the metal. It took forty tries, which is the whole meaning of the name: water displacement, 40th formula.

This episode sorts out who deserves the credit. Company president Norman B. Larsen has long been named as the inventor, but historian Iris Engstrand points to Iver Norman Lawson, a chemist who mixed the formula at home and was paid 500 dollars. Larsen's contribution was the aerosol can that carried it into garages by 1958. From airline hangars to a public listing in 1973, the story ends with a recipe that was never patented and is still kept secret.

The Atlas missile would crumple like an empty soda can without internal pressure pushing against its thin steel skin.
By 1965 Delta and United were using the spray, with United applying it to the joints of Boeing 720s and DC-8s during overhauls.
The company skipped a patent, which would have forced disclosure, and in 2018 moved the original paper formula by armored vehicle to a bank vault.
U.S. safety data sheets list 45 to 50 percent isoparaffins, under 35 percent mineral oil, and 2 to 3 percent carbon dioxide as propellant.
Wired magazine ran the spray through gas chromatography and mass spectrometry in 2009 and found C9 to C14 alkanes and mineral oil, ingredients but not the recipe.

Denne episoden er hentet fra en åpen RSS-feed og er ikke publisert av Podme. Den kan derfor inneholde annonser.

Episoder(16184)

The Art of Adult Friendship: Why Quality Matters More Than Quantity

Got something to say to this podcast? Send a voicemail, and you might hear yourself on the next episode!In this episode of pplpod, we explore how our understanding of friendship changes as we grow old...

9 Nov 18min

Summer Explained: The Science, History, and Traditions of the Warmest Season

Got something to say to this podcast? Send a voicemail, and you might hear yourself on the next episode!In this episode of pplpod, we explore summer, the season most closely associated with sunshine, ...

7 Nov 18min

Sir Patrick Stewart: From Shakespeare to Star Trek, the Life and Legacy of a Legend

Got something to say to this podcast? Send a voicemail, and you might hear yourself on the next episode!In this episode of pplpod, we explore the extraordinary life of Sir Patrick Stewart, the acclaim...

7 Nov 49min

Larry David: The Genius of Social Awkwardness, Seinfeld, and Curb Your Enthusiasm

Got something to say to this podcast? Send a voicemail, and you might hear yourself on the next episode!In this episode of pplpod, we explore the life and career of Larry David, the comedian, writer, ...

6 Nov 38min

Why Australian Shepherds Aren't From Australia

Got something to say to this podcast? Send a voicemail, and you might hear yourself on the next episode!In this episode of pplpod, we explore the history of the Australian Shepherd, an intelligent, en...

5 Nov 45min

Labrador Retriever: From Newfoundland Fishing Dogs to Modern-Day Heroes

Got something to say to this podcast? Send a voicemail, and you might hear yourself on the next episode!In this episode of pplpod, we explore the remarkable history of the Labrador Retriever, one of t...

4 Nov 53min

Discovering Ireland: A Journey Through History, Culture, and the Wild Atlantic Way

Got something to say to this podcast? Send a voicemail, and you might hear yourself on the next episode!In this episode of pplpod, we explore Ireland through the philosophy of slow travel: go slower, ...

3 Nov 48min

Willie Hutch: An Overnight I'll Be There Lyric and The Mack's Soundtrack

Got something to say to this podcast? Send a voicemail, and you might hear yourself on the next episode!William McKinley Hutchins was born in Los Angeles in December 1944 and raised in Dallas, where h...

2 Nov 21min