History of the beginnings of the plastics industry in Portugal

This paper aims to present a history of plastics in Portugal. In the context of this paper, the 'history of plastics' means a historical approach to the evolution over time of a broad field of relationships involving plastics after their arrival in Portugal at the beginning of the twentieth century. This will include the technological and scientific developments involved in the production and adaptation of plastics in Portugal, the objects produced from plastic and the influence they had on social and cultural habits, the history of companies that started working with plastics from an early date, and the production and use of plastics. How and when did plastics, materials with such innovative features, appear in Portugal and what was their impact on society at the time, in the 1930s? How did the Portuguese plastics industry evolve from its origins and what was the path of the appropriation and adoption of techniques, and processes for plastics manufacture? These research questions will be analysed in this paper. In addition, the global historical narrative about the origins, evolution and impact of the plastics industry and their products will be briefly described.