Nylon is a generic designation for a family of synthetic polymers composed of polyamides (repeating units linked by amide links).

Nylon is a silk-like thermoplastic, generally made from petroleum,

that can be melt-processed into fibers, films, or shapes.:2

Nylon polymers can be mixed with a wide variety of additives to achieve many different property variations.

Nylon polymers have found significant commercial applications in fabric and fibers (apparel, flooring and rubber reinforcement), in shapes (molded parts for cars, electrical equipment, etc.), and in films (mostly for food packaging).Nylon was the first commercially successful synthetic thermoplastic polymer. DuPont began its research project in 1927.

The first example of nylon, (nylon 66), was synthesized using diamines on February 28, 1935, by Wallace Hume Carothers at DuPont's research facility at the DuPont Experimental Station. In response to Carothers' work, Paul Schlack at IG Farben developed nylon 6, a different molecule based on caprolactam, on January 29, 1938.:10Nylon was first used commercially in a nylon-bristled toothbrush in 1938, followed more famously in women's stockings or "nylons" which were shown at the 1939 New York World's Fair and first sold commercially in 1940, whereupon they became an instant commercial success with 64 million pairs sold during their first year on the market. During World War II, almost all nylon production was diverted to the military for use in parachutes and parachute cord. Wartime uses of nylon and other plastics greatly increased the market for the new materials.



DuPont de Nemours, Inc., commonly known as DuPont, is an American company formed by the merger of Dow Chemical and E. I. du Pont de Nemours and Company on August 31, 2017, and the subsequent spinoffs of Dow Inc. and Corteva. Prior to the spinoffs it was the world's largest chemical company in terms of sales. The merger has been reported to be worth an estimated $130 billion. With 2018 total revenue of $86 billion, DowDuPont ranked No. 35 on the 2019 Fortune 500 list of the largest United States public corporations. DuPont is headquartered in Wilmington, Delaware, in the state where it is incorporated, since the founding of the old DuPont in 1802.

Within 18 months of the merger on June 1, 2019, DowDupont was split into three publicly traded companies with focuses on agriculture (Corteva), materials science (Dow Inc.), and specialty products (DuPont).