Gutta-percha is a hard natural latex made from the sap of Palaquium, Isonandra and Dichopsis trees. The word itself comes from the name of the plant in the Malay language - "geiha Persian", which translates as "glove latex". Gutta-percha - what are they? This adjective is used both literally and figuratively.
Scientifically
What is the meaning of the word "gutta-percha"? Scientifically, this material was classified in 1843 as a useful natural thermoplastic. In the second half of the 19th century, gutta-percha was used for a variety of domestic and industrial purposes.
In particular, this material was needed as an insulating substance for underwater telegraph cables. Long before gutta-percha was introduced to the Western world, it was used in a less processed form by natives of the Malaysian archipelago tomaking handles for knives, walking sticks and other uses.
The first European to discover this material was John Tradescant, who discovered it in the Far East in 1656. He called it "Maser's forest". Dr. William Montgomery, Medical Officer of the Indian Service, introduced gutta-percha into practical use in the West. He was the first to appreciate the potential of this material in medicine, and in 1843 he was awarded a gold medal from the Royal Society of Arts in London.
Gutta-percha tree
In Malaysia, the tree is known as "taban" and people there have traditionally used hardened sap ("hanah") to make items such as molded tool handles and knives. This natural latex, also called gutta-percha, is a very valuable product.
Palaquium gutta trees grow to a height of 5-30 m and are usually up to 1.5 m in diameter. The leaves are evergreen, alternate or spirally arranged, simple, entire, about 8-25 cm long each. They are glossy green above and often yellow or glaucous below.
Flowers appear in small clusters along the stems, each flower has a white corolla with four to seven (mostly six) sharp lobes. The fruit is an ovoid berry 3-7 cm in diameter, containing one to four seeds. It is edible in many species.
In Australia, gutta-percha is the common name specifically used for the Excoecaria parvifolia tree, which produces an aromatic, heavy, dark brown wood. Its alsocalled "northern birch". This special species is not related to the genus Palaquium.
From a chemical point of view
What does gutta-percha mean? In the literal sense, it is made from gutta-percha. What is this material from a chemical point of view? In its structure, it is a latex elastomer or a polymer of isoprene or polyisoprene. While latex rubbers are amorphous in molecular structure, the gutta-percha (transstructure) crystallizes resulting in a stiffer consistency. Gutta-percha is a polymer of isoprene that is soft when heated and can be easily molded into various shapes that are finely detailed.
Dental use
The same bio-inertia that made gutta-percha suitable for marine cables also came in handy for medical purposes, namely dentistry. This material is used in many surgical devices and in root therapy (obturation or filling of empty space inside the root of a tooth after it has undergone endodontic therapy). Its physical and chemical properties, including inertness and biocompatibility, melting point, ductility and malleability, make it important in endodontics.
Historical use
Being biologically inert and stable, this kind of latex is a good electrical insulator with a high dielectric constant. Wood of many species is also valuable. The properties of gutta-percha were noticed by the Western world only in 1842, although the local Malay aborigines used it formany centuries. If this liquid (juice) is allowed to evaporate and coagulate in the sun, a rigid latex is obtained, which can again be flexible when heated, but not brittle, unlike rubber obtained before the discovery of vulcanization.
By 1845, telegraph wires insulated with gutta-percha were being produced in Great Britain. Latex served as the insulating material for early submarine telegraph cables, including the first transatlantic telegraph cable. Gutta-percha was particularly suitable for this, as it was not attacked by the marine plants or animals that defaced previous submarine cables.
The material was the main component of the Chatterton joint, used as an insulating sealant for telegraph and other electrical cables. Since the 1930s, polyethylene has replaced gutta-percha as an electrical insulator.
In the middle of the 19th century, gutta-percha was also used to make furniture, in particular by the Gutta-Percha company, founded in 1847. When heated, the material could be molded into furniture, ornaments, or utensils. Some of these revival style decorative pieces were shown at the Great Exhibition in 1851 in Hyde Park, London.
Modern usage
It was also used to make mourning jewelry because it was dark in color and could easily be molded into beads or other shapes. Pistol grips and shoulder pads were also made from gutta-percha, which gave them strength and durability. A guttie golf ball that hadsolid gutta-percha core, revolutionized the game.
This material remained the main industrial product in the 20th century, but later began to be gradually replaced by superior quality synthetic materials. Despite its long history, gutta-percha is still used today. Modern dentists continue to use it to fill root canals.
"Gutta-percha": meaning
What is this concept? So, in the literal sense, gutta-percha is made from gutta-percha (natural rubber). In a figurative sense, this word has acquired a meaning associated with flexibility and elasticity. In relation to people, this definition began to be used and became a household name after D. V. Grigorovich wrote his sad story "The Gutta-Percha Boy".
This is a tragic story about a circus boy who was said to have no bones because he was so flexible and agile. From now on, people who are called gutta-percha are athletes with a good stretch. It is achieved through long-term training. A gutta-percha woman is a gymnast who can do incredible things with her body.
Gutta-percha walk
What does gutta-percha mean? This word is now quite fashionable and in youth slang means flexible, beautiful, graceful. If you recall the words from the song of the singer Bianchi - "With a gut-percha gait, we go to Iarfor"(nightclub)… ".
Here I mean not so much elastic and flexible as soft, swaying and graceful. You can sometimes hear about a person that he or she is so gutta-percha. It can mean flexible and sexy. Although in the past the term was associated with rubber bands and gymnasts, it is now synonymous with sexuality as well.
Incredibly flexible
Gutta-percha is surprisingly flexible, plastic, having the ability to bend in different directions, and without harming one's own he alth. This is often seen in the circus. Such numbers are performed by gutta-percha people, gymnasts and acrobats with increased body flexibility, stunning the audience with their incredible plasticity.
