The production of polyethylene glycol was first reported in 1859. Both A. V. Laurence and Charles Adolphe Wurtz independently isolated products that were polyethylene glycols.[8] Polyethylene glycol is produced by the interaction of ethylene oxide with water, ethylene glycol, or ethylene glycol oligomers.[9] The reaction is catalyzed by acidic or basic catalysts. Ethylene glycol and its oligomers are preferable as a starting material instead of water, because they allow the creation of polymers with a low polydispersity (narrow molecular weight distribution).