tinfoil n : foil made of tin or an alloy of tin and lead [syn: tin foil]

English

Noun

1. a thin, pliable sheet of tin or an alloy of tin and lead, used as a protective wrapping
2. (as a misnomer) aluminium foil

Alternative spellings

• tin foil

Derived terms

• tin-foil hat

Tinfoil or tin foil is a thin leaf made of tin.

Aluminium foil is sometimes mistakenly referred to as "tin foil".

History

Foil made from a thin leaf of tin was commercially available before its aluminium counterpart. In the late 19th century and early 20th century, tin foil was in common use, and some people continue to refer to the new product by the name of the old one. Tin foil is stiffer than aluminium foil. It tends to give a slight tin taste to food wrapped in it, which is one major reason it has largely been replaced by aluminium and other materials for wrapping food.

The first audio recordings on phonograph cylinders were made on tin foil.

Tin was first replaced by aluminium starting in 1910, when the first aluminium foil rolling plant, “Dr. Lauber, Neher & Cie., Emmishofen.” was opened in Kreuzlingen, Switzerland. The plant, owned by J.G. Neher & Sons (aluminium manufacturers) started in 1886 in Schaffhausen, Switzerland, at the foot of the Rhine Falls - capturing the falls’ energy to produce aluminium. Neher's sons together with Dr. Lauber discovered the endless rolling process and the use of aluminium foil as a protective barrier.

Tin foil is also a good deflector of light. Wrapping it around an object with the shiny side outward will keep the object cool. Light will hit it and be deflected, keeping the sun's rays away thus keeping it cool. It can also be put on windows — shiny side outward — to keep the sun out.

See also

• foil (chemistry)
• tin-foil hat
• List of common misnomers