Kamptulicon, whose name was derived from the Greek ''kamptos'' (“flexible”) + ''oulos'' (“thick”), was a floor covering made from powdered

cork Cork or CORK may refer to: Materials * Cork (material), an impermeable buoyant plant product ** Cork (plug), a cylindrical or conical object used to seal a container ***Wine cork Places Ireland * Cork (city) ** Metropolitan Cork, also known as G ...

and

natural rubber Rubber, also called India rubber, latex, Amazonian rubber, ''caucho'', or ''caoutchouc'', as initially produced, consists of polymers of the organic compound isoprene, with minor impurities of other organic compounds. Thailand, Malaysia, and ...

. Patented by Elijah Galloway in 1843, kamptulicon was first launched in public at the

1862 International Exhibition The International Exhibition of 1862, or Great London Exposition, was a world's fair. It was held from 1 May to 1 November 1862, beside the gardens of the Royal Horticultural Society, South Kensington, London, England, on a site that now houses ...

in London, where it caused a sensation. Its promoters compared it to thick, soft leather, and lauded its ease of cleaning, water resistance, warmth, and sound-deadening qualities. Critics, however, pointed out that its grey-brown colour was unattractive. Attempts were made to brighten it up by stencilling patterns on it with oil paint, but these suffered from a lack of durability. Kamptulicon was manufactured by sprinkling powdered cork on to thin bands of rubber, which was then rolled and rerolled until thoroughly mixed. It was then coated on one or both sides with

linseed oil Linseed oil, also known as flaxseed oil or flax oil (in its edible form), is a colourless to yellowish oil obtained from the dried, ripened seeds of the flax plant (''Linum usitatissimum''). The oil is obtained by pressing, sometimes followed by ...

varnish or oil paint. Powdered

sulphur Sulfur (or sulphur in British English) is a chemical element with the symbol S and atomic number 16. It is abundant, multivalent and nonmetallic. Under normal conditions, sulfur atoms form cyclic octatomic molecules with a chemical formula ...

was also sometimes mixed in, and the material then heated to produce a form of

vulcanized Vulcanization (British: Vulcanisation) is a range of processes for hardening rubbers. The term originally referred exclusively to the treatment of natural rubber with sulfur, which remains the most common practice. It has also grown to includ ...

kamptulicon. As well as a floor covering, kamptulicon was also used as cushions in stamping presses, and as polishing wheels for metals. Within a few years, faced by stiff competition from the manufacturers of

oilcloth Oilcloth, also known as enameled cloth or American cloth, is close-woven cotton duck or linen cloth with a coating of boiled linseed oil to make it waterproof. Manufacture Boiled linseed oil was prepared by a long boiling of linseed oil with me ...

coupled with huge increases in the price of natural rubber, kamptulicon production ceased.

Notes

Composite materials Floors {{tool-stub

See also

Notes