Polyester

Polyester is the most-used textile fiber on earth, a synthetic spun from the same PET plastic used for drink bottles. It was patented in 1941 by the British chemists John Whinfield and James Dickson, sold first as Terylene and then as DuPont's Dacron. Strong, cheap, quick-drying, and famously wrinkle-resistant, it powered the wash-and-wear and double-knit booms of the 1960s and 70s, then was widely mocked for the sweaty leisure suit. Modern microfiber and performance versions rebuilt its reputation, and it now dominates global cloth production, with growing concern over the microplastics it sheds.