Every scandal begins with a lie, but the truth always comes out then comes fall out and outrage hosted by lindsey, graham wondering podcast american scandal takes you deep into the heart of america's dark side to look at what drives someone to break the rules and what happens when their caught their new season covers the dupont chemical cover up a heartbreaking tale of the race for the cheapest and quickest production of plastics coolants and synthetic consumer products that lead to catastrophic contamination and irreparable damage for those that were exposed to harmful chemicals. Entire communities of people, catalan land, suffered toxic poisoning for decades due to negligence and greed. did these chemicals make their way into the local water supply and what happened to the towns once the truth was revealed, we're about to hear a preview of american scandal why your listening make sure to follow. American

scandal on apple, podcasts, amazon, music or wherever you get your podcast? You can listen. We eagerly and ad free by joining, wondering, plus an apple pie cast or the wondering app. Is April. Sixth, one thousand nine hundred and thirty eight in aladdin deepwater new jersey, Roy plunkett, lays out a series of glass beakers, the rubber hose and attachment

with steel cylinder and as he checks the readings on his equipment, he gets a brief flicker of excitement. The same feeling of thrill he gets every morning. He walks into work. Plunkett is a chemist for dupont, one of the largest chemical corporations in america he's twenty seven years old and has only been with the company a couple of years, but with his neatly parted, hair and white button down shirt, he likes to think he fits in that he's doing his part to advance the world's understanding of chemistry. Of course, the work isn't easy. Recently plunkett has been trying to create a new type of refrigerant that can be used in products like air conditioners. The refrigerant needs to be safe and non toxic, and it also needs to be viable to produce on an industrial scale allowing dupont to keep it's edge in the industry, but so far plunkett hasn't made any big discovery. After months of experiments he's running out of options still he knows there's nothing. He can do except plow ahead and try. Yet again.

The plunkett looks up as jack reebok. His assistant entered the lab haydock. What's on the agenda today we tried two year fee, that's right jack, but I'm nervous touch the floor. Ethylene. It's not easy to get a hold of gosh, it's expensive

We tried everything else well, but by maybe we'll get lucky mean we just gotta keep pushing forward progress, that's the name of the game it upon pocket nods and the two men begin. A familiar routine. Reebok takes the hose connected to the steel cylinder filled with he effie gas pocket than connects the other end to the reactor attack wherein the tea Effie will react with hydrochloric ass. It were a jack. You check your connection, we ready. I must release the gas. Reebok begins twisting metal knob on the cylinder, but for some reason they dont here the hissing sound of gas being released somethin wrong. This I'm sorry I don't know done, as is the cylinder full may his empty. Now

I put the gas myself check again. Maybe there's something wrong with the balance. Reebok turns the valve again and looks back up now, and it looks like it's doing. Fine, while I'm sure there's gas in the tank, why isn't it coming out might have no idea? What should we do? Well, but let's have a look: plunkett begins twisting a valve on the cylinder are getting ready to remove it: hey hey! If there's gaston there couldn't cause an explosion, not I don't think that's a risk, there's something else going on. I dunno why? But we have to take along okay for now, I'm going to step back. I don't want to lose an arm, plunkett smiles and, as he pulls the valve off the cylinder, there's no explosion his that's strange with no idea what else to do pocket begin shaking the cylinder upside down and a few tiny white flecks of white powder raining down on the lab and what

Does that stuff? I do not know pocket runs a finger through the mysterious white powder. It's odd he's, never seen anything like it, but now he's curious. What could have as the powder to form. The only way to get an answer is to take a look inside the metal cylinder where the gas had been stored, so Plunkett grabs a hacksaw and starts cutting the cylinder in half after several minutes of hard work, the metal cylinder splits open and it reveals a stunning sign, there's more of the white powder, but it's stuck together in a solid form, crystalline and almost looks like a g owed plunkett and his assistant exchange. Look. This could be nothing just a fluke or it could be a breakthrough. either way plunkett has to find out, and so he and reebok begin running a battery of tests over the next several hours. They discover that the white powder doesn't melt under extreme heat.

Doesn't dissolve in water. It seems chemically inert and, curiously, absolutely nothing will stick to it. Water, oil, solvents everything just slides off this is new and exciting. Pocket leaves the lab steps out into the cool spring air outside his mind is racing this white powder doesn't appear to be a refrigerant. That means plunkett hasn't completed his original task, but maybe that doesn't matter because this Absence is some kind of miracle and unprecedented material could rebel. It's nice consumer products and potentially make a fortune for DU pont. We've been listening to a preview of american scandal, make sure to check out the rest of this episode wherever you get your podcasts