Neoprene was invented by DuPont scientists on April 17, 1930 after Dr Elmer K. Bolton of DuPont attended a lecture by Fr Julius Arthur Nieuwland, a professor of chemistry at the University of Notre Dame.
DuPont first marketed the compound in 1931 under the trade name DuPrene,[REF] but its commercial possibilities were limited by the original manufacturing process, which left the product with a foul odor [REF].