Stephanie Kwolek

Washington, June 21 (Reuters): Stephanie Kwolek, an American chemist who in 1965 invented a super-strong fibre called Kevlar that revolutionised body armour and protected innumerable police officers and soldiers from bullets, has died at age 90.

Kwolek, who worked for the DuPont chemical company for four decades starting in 1946, died in Delaware after a short illness. The company confirmed her death.

The 4-foot-11 Kwolek was working to find a fibre to strengthen radial tyres when she came across a thin, milky solution of polymers that showed real promise.

She told the News Journal newspaper in Wilmington, Delaware, in 2007 that it was not exactly a “eureka moment.” But it led to the development of Kevlar, now a critical part of bulletproof vests.