Cambridge IELTS 5 · Academic · Test 2 · Passage 1
Bakelite: The Birth Of Modern Plastics — IELTS Reading Answers
All 12 answers for Bakelite: The Birth Of Modern Plastics, Cambridge IELTS 5 Academic Reading Test 2 Passage 1, with the passage evidence and an explanation for each.
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Bakelite: The Birth Of Modern Plastics answer key at a glance
Questions 1–13. Tap an answer to see the evidence.
What this passage tests
This passage is tested with Summary Completion (Q1–3), Flow Chart Completion (Q4–8), Two Choices (Q9–10), True / False / Not Given (Q11–13). Each section below gives the strategy for that question type, the answers, and the sentence that proves them.
Questions 1–3: Summary Completion
Strategy: Read the summary as a paragraph first to establish the logic, then locate the missing idea in the passage. With a lettered list, confirm the grammar fits.
“Some are 'thermoplastic', which means that, like candlewax, they melt when heated and can then be reshaped”
The gap needs an everyday example of a thermoplastic: 'like candlewax, they melt when heated and can then be reshaped'.
“Bakelite had the distinction of being the first totally synthetic thermosetting plastic”
The gap needs the adjective for Bakelite's novelty: it was 'the first totally synthetic thermosetting plastic'.
“The impetus behind the development of these early plastics was generated by a number of factors — immense technological progress in the domain of chemistry, coupled with wider cultural changes,”
The gap needs the field of technological progress: 'immense technological progress in the domain of chemistry' drove early plastics.
Questions 4–8: Flow Chart Completion
Strategy: Follow the arrows in order. Each stage usually maps to one sentence or one clause in the passage.
“The result was a resin known as Novalak, which became soluble and malleable when heated”
The flow chart needs the resin's name: the result 'was a resin known as Novalak, which became soluble and malleable when heated'.
“Other substances were then introduced: including fillers, such as woodflour, asbestos or cotton, which increase strength and moisture resistance, catalysts (substances to speed up the reaction between two chemicals without joining to either) and hexa,”
The chart needs the substances increasing strength: 'fillers, such as woodflour, asbestos or cotton, which increase strength and moisture resistance'.
“Other substances were then introduced: including fillers, such as woodflour, asbestos or cotton, which increase strength and moisture resistance, catalysts (substances to speed up the reaction between two chemicals without joining to either) and hexa,”
The chart needs the compound supplying extra formaldehyde: 'hexa, a compound of ammonia and formaldehyde', formed the thermosetting resin.
“The resulting granular powder was raw Bakelite, ready to be made into a vast range of manufactured objects”
The chart needs the state of the powder: 'the resulting granular powder was raw Bakelite, ready to be made into ... objects'.
“In the last stage, the heated Bakelite was poured into a hollow mould of the required shape and subjected to extreme heat and pressure, thereby 'setting' its form for life”
The chart needs the second condition in the mould: the heated Bakelite was 'subjected to extreme heat and pressure'.
Questions 9–10: Two Choices
Strategy: Both answers must be supported by the passage. Check each option independently; order does not usually matter.
“The object could not be designed so that it was locked into the mould and therefore difficult to extract Moulds had to be carefully designed so that the molten Bakelite would flow evenly and completely into the mould”
B and C fit: the object must not be 'locked into the mould', and the molten Bakelite must 'flow evenly and completely into the mould'.
Questions 11–13: True / False / Not Given
Strategy: Judge the whole statement against the text. FALSE contradicts the passage; NOT GIVEN means the passage never addresses that specific claim.
Modern-day plastic preparation is based on the same principles as that patented in 1907.
“On 13 July 1907, Baekeland took out his famous patent describing this preparation, the essential features of which are still in use today”
The 1907 patent's 'essential features ... are still in use today', so modern preparation rests on the same principles.
Bakelite was immediately welcomed as a practical and versatile material.
“Baekeland's invention, although treated with disdain in its early years, went on to enjoy an unparalleled popularity which lasted throughout the first half of the twentieth century”
Bakelite was 'treated with disdain in its early years', so it was not immediately welcomed as practical and versatile.
Bakelite was only available in a limited range of colours.
“Electrical manufacturers seized on its insulating properties, and consumers everywhere relished its dazzling array of shades, delighted that they were now, at last, no longer restricted to the wood tones and drab browns of the pre-plastic era”
Consumers enjoyed 'its dazzling array of shades', so Bakelite was not limited to a few colours — the statement is contradicted.
Learn the question types in this passage
Frequently asked questions
Where does the Bakelite: The Birth Of Modern Plastics passage come from?
It is Passage 1 of Cambridge IELTS 5 Academic Reading Test 2, and it covers Questions 1–13.
What question types appear in Bakelite: The Birth Of Modern Plastics?
The passage is tested with Summary Completion, Flow Chart Completion, Two Choices, True / False / Not Given. Each type is explained on this page, alongside the answers.
Are these reading answers reliable?
Every answer is paired with the sentence that proves it, so you can check each one against the passage yourself. Use the page after a timed attempt, not instead of one.
Cambridge IELTS is published by Cambridge University Press & Assessment. Band9Prep is not affiliated with Cambridge. This page is an independent study aid: it gives the answer key, the passage evidence and an explanation so you can review an attempt you have already made.