In 1916, the brothers were invited to live in Britain by the British Government, to produce their recently developed cellulose acetate dope for the war effort; the canvas skins of aircraft of the time were sealed and made taut with nitrocellulose dope, which was easily ignited by bullets.

At the end of World War I, the British Government cancelled all contracts and the company changed to produce acetate fibres.

[6] Softer and stronger, as well as being cheaper to produce than other fabrics used at the time such as satin or taffeta, Celanese was used in the production of garments.

[7] In the interwar era, the company benefited from tariff protection extended to the rayon industry by the Finance Act of 1925.

[8] British Celanese was the first factory in Britain to produce propylene and from it isopropyl alcohol and acetone in 1942.