page_title: Polybenzimidazole fiber
section_title: Development
hierarchical_section_title: Polybenzimidazole fiber / History / Development
caption_attribution_description: English: Replica Apollo spacesuit front shown at 2014 "Suited for Space" Exhibit at the Chemical Heritage Foundation
context_page_description: Polybenzimidazole fiber is a synthetic fiber with a very high decomposition temperature and doesn't exhibit a melting point. It has exceptional thermal and chemical stability and does not readily ignite. It was first discovered by American polymer chemist Carl Shipp Marvel in the pursuit of new materials with superior stability, retention of stiffness, toughness at elevated temperature. Due to its high stability, polybenzimidazole is used to fabricate high-performance protective apparel such as firefighter's gear, astronaut space suits, high temperature protective gloves, welders’ apparel and aircraft wall fabrics. Polybenzimidazole has been applied as a membrane in fuel cells.
context_section_description: Its development history can be summarized in the following list:
  In 1961, polybenzimidazole was developed by H. Vogel and C.S. Marvel with anticipation that the polymers would have exceptional thermal and oxidative stability.
  Subsequently, in 1963, NASA and the Air Force Materials Lab sponsored considerable work with polybenimidazole for aerospace and defense applications as a non-flammable and thermally stable textile fiber.
  In 1969, the United States Air Force selected polybenzimidazole (PBI) for its superior thermal protective performance after a 1967 fire aboard the Apollo 1 spacecraft killed three astronauts.
  In the early 1970s USAF laboratories experimented with polybenzimidazole fibers for protective clothing to reduce aircrew deaths from fires.
  In the 1970s, NASA continued to use PBI as part of the astronauts’ clothing on Apollo, Skylab and numerous space shuttle flights.
  When the Sky lab fell to the earth, the part that survived the re-entry was coated in PBI and thus did not burn up.
  1980s – PBI was introduced to the fire service, and through Project Fires an outer shell for turnout gear was developed. PBI Gold fabric was born, consisting of 40% PBI/60% para-aramid. Previous to this, combinations of Nomex, leather, and Kevlar materials were used in the US.
  1983 – A unique production plant goes on-line and PBI fibers become commercially available.
  1990s – Short-cut PBI fibers are introduced for use in automotive braking systems. PBI staple fiber enters the aircraft market for seat fire blocking layers.
  1992 – Lightweight PBI fabrics are developed for flame-resistant workwear for electric utility and petrochemical applications.
  1994 – PBI Gold fabric is engineered in black and was specified by FDNY.
  2001 – After the terrorist attacks on September 11, many of the 343 fire fighters killed were only identifiable by their TenCate PBI Turnout Gear.
  2003 – PBI Matrix was commercialized and introduced as the next-generation PBI for firefighter turnout gear.
caption: Replica Apollo spacesuit, Chemical Heritage Foundation temporary exhibit, 2014
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