The Revolutionary Fireproof Plastic
As I was browsing the web for some cool new technologies I came across this remarkable invention: a plastic that is capable of withstanding extreme heat — heats up to the melting point of diamonds… threefold. A hairdresser named Maurice Ward of Yorkshire, UK, invented it after experimenting with possible flame-retardant material.
Here are some videos demonstrating it’s uses:
This material seems astonishing but it is not something that was newly discovered. The product, called Starlite, was invented in 1970s and 1980s. It was invented more than 20 years ago.
Then why have most of us not heard of it before?
Ward refused to give out his formula. Unfortunately, he died in 2011 and supposedly, no one but his immediate family knows the formula to recreate this miraculous material. Then how do we even know that this material can back up Ward’s claims? The two videos above are supposedly reason enough to believe that Starlite is the real deal, but there are a lot of skeptics that say Starlite is a hoax and that it isn’t as good as it sounds.
Regardless of if Starlite is what Ward claims it is, a material that is flexible and capable of withstanding and seemingly diffuse extreme heat would be extremely beneficial for mankind.
The number of possible applications of Starlite is unimaginable, but here are some to get an idea of what such a material is capable of.
Fireproofing houses
If we applied a layer of Starlite on our houses and our belongings, we would be able to prevent many accidental house fires and possibly even crimes like arson. When an unattended stove ignites the food on it, the surrounding items would not catch on fire and allow the food to burn out.
Spacecraft exteriors
Space shuttles would not need to spend a lot of money on their heat-resistant tiles and would simply be able to coat their aircraft with a thin layer of cheaply-made Starlite.
Insulation
Starlite is able to shield things from intense heat which means it is a good insulator of heat. We would be able to coat the inside of buildings, reducing the cost of heaters.
Military uses
Starlite could be used with many military applications. With the verge of laser warfare, we would be able to make our aircraft immune to such weapons. Also, infrared homing (heat seeking) missiles would be less effective because the material would render the target invisible to the tracking system.
References:
The Tech Tree 
Thanks for the insight. Do you know why Ward refused to give up the formula or any ideas as to why? Do you know of any companies who have tried to come up with this very useful plastic since Ward came up with it back in the 1970s?
According to the sources I found, Ward was paranoid of having his product reverse engineered. He was afraid that someone who got his hands on it would be able to figure out it’s composition and market it, feeding off of Ward’s work.
Him never giving up the formula is also the reason for why a lot of people think his product is a hoax. I have not heard of any company trying to recreate the plastic.