Stephanie Kwolek, American chemist and engineer, invented Kevlar (died 2014)

Stephanie Louise Kwolek was an American chemist best known for inventing Kevlar. Her career at the DuPont company spanned more than 40 years.

Kevlar (para-aramid) is a strong, heat-resistant synthetic fiber, related to other aramids such as Nomex and Technora. Developed by Stephanie Kwolek at DuPont in 1965, the high-strength material was first used commercially in the early 1970s as a replacement for steel in racing tires. It is typically spun into ropes or fabric sheets that can be used as such, or as an ingredient in composite material components.