Galalith

[1] In 1893, French chemist Auguste Trillat discovered the means to insolubilize (i.e., to make a substance incapable of being dissolved in a liquid, especially water) and harden considerably casein by immersion in formaldehyde, also preventing it from decomposing via micro-organisms and water like older 19th century "moldable casein" formulations preceding his discovery which had an extremely limited lifespan and low reliability overall due to lack of formaldehyde and using instead various stabilizing and preserving agents such as borax, various alkali salts and even lead based chemicals which revealed to be highly ineffective.

One limitation on the uses of Galalith was that in thin sheets it could be slightly softened at 100 °C and cut with forms, but when made into items above a certain size it tended to splinter or warp.

[4] No other plastic at the time could compete on price, however, and with ivory, horn and bone products becoming far more expensive, it found a natural home in the fashion industry.

[2] Usual industrial methods of fabrication followed these guidelines: sufficiently dried casein powder was mixed with coloring agents and various additives, but without formaldehyde.

Another French company, Etablissements Garaud in the Charente region, produced "isogalithe" using an unorthodox process where the casein was used as a moist fresh coagulated mass, not in the usual dried powder form preceding the pressing.

[2] Galalith was used for striking Art Deco jewelry designs by artists such as Jakob Bengel and Auguste Bonaz, as well as for hair combs and accessories.

By the 1930s, Galalith was also used for knitting needles,[4] pens, umbrella handles, white piano keys (replacing natural ivory), and electrical goods,[7] with world production at that time reaching 10,000 tons.

Although Galalith was historically cheap, the fact it could not be moulded and its inherent flaws, being one of the first man-made plastics, led to its demise by commercial end users.