Today’s episode is about breaking something scientists once thought was unbreakable. Teflon — the plastic in non-stick pans and industrial coatings — is famous for being chemically indestructible. But a new study suggests that assumption might be wrong. I’m joined by two researchers who turned that myth upside down:

• Dr. Dominik Kubicki, who used advanced spectroscopy to prove the chemistry is truly clean

• Dr. Roly Armstrong, who led the project on breaking down Teflon using mechanical energy instead of heat