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HSPRD intellectual property partners Michael Hierl and Todd Parkhurst explain the development of Super Glue.

Patent Pending – The Development of Super Glue

Super Glue was invented by accident in 1942 when Dr. Harry Coover of Eastman-Kodak’s chemical division was working to develop a clear plastic material for use in rifle scopes. Some of the chemicals used, cyanoacrylates, were very sticky and difficult to work with so the researchers at Kodak opted to investigate other materials.

About ten years later, Dr. Coover and other researchers at Kodak were working on another military contract to develop heat-resistant polymers for jet canopies. A few of the chemicals investigated were cyanoacrylates which were discovered to have the unique property of requiring no heat or pressure to form a permanent bond.

In 1958, Dr. Coover received U.S. Patent No. 2,768,109 for his “Alcohol-Catalyzed α-Cyanoacrylate Adhesive Compositions,” and Kodak began selling the product as “Flash Glue” or “Eastman 910” (the first commercial version of Super Glue). The particular cyanoacrylate used was the 910th compound tested by Kodak for that project. 

In addition to bonding materials, the product was used in Vietnam to treat wounds. Medics sprayed the material over open wounds, which stopped bleeding immediately and provided time to transport wounded soldiers for triage and surgical care. This eventually resulted in the FDA approving cyanoacrylates for certain medical uses including rejoining veins and arteries during surgery, stopping uncontrolled bleeding and performing dental surgery. 3M and other companies currently sell over-the-counter wound care products containing cyanoacrylates. 

However, Kodak was never able to capitalize on the product from a commercial standpoint, and the business was sold to National Starch in 1980. Rights were later acquired by Loctite, an adhesives company in Connecticut, where Dr. Coover worked as president of new business development after retiring from Kodak.

Other uses of cyanoacrylates include forensics and law enforcement. In the late 1970s, it was determined that fumes from cyanoacrylates react with fingerprints to form a white residue that reveals fingerprint images on smooth surfaces. 

If you have any questions about protecting your intellectual property, please give us a call.

 Michael A. Hierl                    Todd S. Parkhurst
 (312) 604-2678         OR       (312) 604-2626
 mhierl@hsplegal.com           tparkhurst@hsplegal.com