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Polymer chemistry



 
 
Polymer chemistry or macromolecular chemistry is a multidisciplinary science
Science

In its broadest sense, science refers to any systematic knowledge or practice. In its more usual restricted sense, science refers to a system of acquiring knowledge based on scientific method, as well as to the organized body of knowledge gained through such research....
 that deals with the chemical synthesis
Chemical synthesis

In chemistry, chemical synthesis is purposeful execution of chemical reactions in order to get a product , or several products. This happens by physics and chemical manipulations usually involving one or more reactions....
 and chemical properties
Chemical property

A chemical property is any of a material's properties that becomes evident during a chemical reaction; that is, any quality that can be established only by changing a substance's Chemical substance....
 of polymer
Polymer

A polymer is a large molecule composed of repeating structural units typically connected by covalent chemical bonds. While polymer in popular usage suggests plastic, the term actually refers to a large class of natural and synthetic materials with a variety of properties....
s or macromolecule
Macromolecule

The term macromolecule by definition implies "large molecule". In the context of biochemistry, the term may be applied to the four conventional biopolymers , as well as non-polymeric molecules with large molecular mass such as macrocycles....
s. According to IUPAC recommendations , macromolecules refer to the individual molecular chains and are the domain of chemistry
Chemistry

Chemistry is the science concerned with the composition, structure, and properties of matter, as well as the changes it undergoes during chemical reactions....
. Polymers describe the bulk properties of polymer materials and belong to the field of polymer physics
Polymer physics

Polymer physics is the field of physics associated to the study of polymers, their fluctuations, Continuum mechanics, as well as the chemical kinetics involving degradation and Polymerization of polymers and monomers respectively....
 as a subfield of physics
Physics

Physics is the natural science which examines basic concepts such as energy, force, and spacetime and all that derives from these, such as mass, charge, matter and its Motion ....
.



Polymers form by polymerization
Polymerization

In polymer chemistry, polymerization is a process of reacting monomer molecules together in a chemical reaction to form three-dimensional networks or polymer chains....
 of monomer
Monomer

A monomer is a small molecule that may become Chemistry chemical bonding to other monomers to form a polymer....
s.






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Polymer chemistry or macromolecular chemistry is a multidisciplinary science
Science

In its broadest sense, science refers to any systematic knowledge or practice. In its more usual restricted sense, science refers to a system of acquiring knowledge based on scientific method, as well as to the organized body of knowledge gained through such research....
 that deals with the chemical synthesis
Chemical synthesis

In chemistry, chemical synthesis is purposeful execution of chemical reactions in order to get a product , or several products. This happens by physics and chemical manipulations usually involving one or more reactions....
 and chemical properties
Chemical property

A chemical property is any of a material's properties that becomes evident during a chemical reaction; that is, any quality that can be established only by changing a substance's Chemical substance....
 of polymer
Polymer

A polymer is a large molecule composed of repeating structural units typically connected by covalent chemical bonds. While polymer in popular usage suggests plastic, the term actually refers to a large class of natural and synthetic materials with a variety of properties....
s or macromolecule
Macromolecule

The term macromolecule by definition implies "large molecule". In the context of biochemistry, the term may be applied to the four conventional biopolymers , as well as non-polymeric molecules with large molecular mass such as macrocycles....
s. According to IUPAC recommendations , macromolecules refer to the individual molecular chains and are the domain of chemistry
Chemistry

Chemistry is the science concerned with the composition, structure, and properties of matter, as well as the changes it undergoes during chemical reactions....
. Polymers describe the bulk properties of polymer materials and belong to the field of polymer physics
Polymer physics

Polymer physics is the field of physics associated to the study of polymers, their fluctuations, Continuum mechanics, as well as the chemical kinetics involving degradation and Polymerization of polymers and monomers respectively....
 as a subfield of physics
Physics

Physics is the natural science which examines basic concepts such as energy, force, and spacetime and all that derives from these, such as mass, charge, matter and its Motion ....
.

  • Biopolymer
    Biopolymer

    Biopolymers are a class of polymers produced by living organisms.Starch, proteins and peptides,and DNA and RNA are all examples of biopolymers, in which the monomeric units, respectively, are sugars, amino acids, and nucleotides....
    s produced by living organisms:
    • structural protein
      Protein

      Proteins are organic compounds made of amino acids arranged in a linear chain and joined together by peptide bonds between the carboxyl and amino groups of adjacent amino acid Residue ....
      s: collagen
      Collagen

      Collagen is the main protein of connective tissue in animals and the most abundant protein in mammals, making up about 25% to 35% of the whole-body protein content....
      , keratin
      Keratin

      Keratins are a family of fibrous protein; tough and insoluble, they form the hard but mineral structures found in reptiles, birds, amphibians and mammals....
      , elastin
      Elastin

      Elastin is a protein in connective tissue that is Elasticity and allows many tissues in the body to resume their shape after stretching or contracting....
    • chemically functional
      Chemical reaction

      A chemical reaction is a process that always results in the interconversion of chemical substances. The substance or substances initially involved in a chemical reaction are called reactants....
       proteins: enzyme
      Enzyme

      Enzymes are biomolecules that catalysis chemical reactions. Almost all enzymes are proteins. In enzymatic reactions, the molecules at the beginning of the process are called Substrate , and the enzyme converts them into different molecules, the products....
      s, hormone
      Hormone

      Hormones are chemicals released by cells that affect cells in other parts of the body. Only a small amount of hormone is required to alter cell metabolism....
      s, transport protein
      Transport protein

      A membrane transport protein is a protein involved in the movement of ions, small molecules, or macromolecules, such as another protein across a biological membrane....
      s…
    • structural polysaccharide
      Polysaccharide

      Polysaccharides are relatively complex carbohydrates. They are polymers made up of many monosaccharides joined together by glycosidic bonds. They are therefore very large, often branched, macromolecules....
      s: cellulose
      Cellulose

      File:Cellulose Sessel.svgCellulose is an organic compound with the chemical formula , a polysaccharide consisting of a linear chain of several hundred to over ten thousand ? linked D-glucose units....
      , chitin
      Chitin

      Chitin n is a long-chain polymer of a N-acetylglucosamine, a derivative of glucose, and is found in many places throughout the natural world....
    • storage polysaccharides: starch
      Starch

      File:Amylose2.svgFile:Amylopektin Sessel.svgStarch or amylum is a polysaccharide carbohydrate consisting of a large number of glucose units joined together by glycosidic bonds....
      , glycogen
      Glycogen

      Glycogen is a polysaccharide of glucose which functions as the secondary short term energy storage in animal cells. It is made primarily by the liver and the muscles, but can also be made by the brain and stomach....
    • nucleic acid
      Nucleic acid

      A nucleic acid is a macromolecule composed of chains of monomeric nucleotides. In biochemistry these molecules carry genetic information or form structures within Cell ....
      s: DNA
      DNA

      Deoxyribonucleic acid is a nucleic acid that contains the genetics instructions used in the development and functioning of all known living organisms and some viruses....
      , RNA
      RNA

      Ribonucleic acid is a type of molecule that consists of a long chain of nucleotide units. Each nucleotide consists of a nucleobase, a ribose sugar, and a phosphate....
  • Synthetic
    Chemical synthesis

    In chemistry, chemical synthesis is purposeful execution of chemical reactions in order to get a product , or several products. This happens by physics and chemical manipulations usually involving one or more reactions....
     polymers used for plastic
    Plastic

    Plastic is the general common term for a wide range of synthetic or semisynthetic organic chemistry solid materials suitable for the manufacture of industrial products....
    s — fiber
    Fiber

    Fiber or fibre is a class of materials that are continuous filaments or are in discrete elongated pieces, similar to lengths of yarn. They are very important in the biology of both plants and animals, for holding tissue s together....
    s, paint
    Paint

    Paint is any liquid, liquifiable, or mastic composition which after application to a Substrate in a thin layer is converted to an opaque solid film....
    s, building material
    Building material

    Building material is any raw material which is used for a construction purpose. Many naturally occurring substances, such as clay, sand, wood and rocks, even twigs and leaves have been used to construct buildings....
    s, furniture
    Furniture

    Furniture is the mass noun for the movable objects which may support the human body , provide storage, or hold objects on horizontal surfaces above the ground....
    , mechanical parts
    Machine

    A machine is any device that uses energy to perform some activity. In common usage, the meaning is that of a device having parts that perform or assist in performing any type of work....
    , adhesive
    Adhesive

    Adhesive or glue is a compound in a liquid or semi-liquid state that adhesion or bonds items together. Adhesives may come from either natural or Chemical synthesis sources....
    s:
    • thermoplastic
      Thermoplastic

      A thermoplastic is a polymer that turns to a liquid when heated and freezes to a very glassy state when cooled sufficiently. Most thermoplastics are high-molecular mass polymers whose Chain s associate through weak Van der Waals forces ; stronger dipole interactions and hydrogen bonding ; or even stacking of aromatic rings ....
      s: polyethylene
      Polyethylene

      Polyethylene or polythene is a thermoplastic commodity heavily used in consumer products . Over 60 million tons of the material are produced worldwide every year....
      , Teflon polystyrene
      Polystyrene

      Polystyrene , sometimes abbreviated PS, is an Aromaticity polymer made from the aromatic monomer styrene, a liquid hydrocarbon that is commercially manufactured from petroleum by the chemical industry....
      , polypropylene
      Polypropylene

      Polypropylene or polypropene is a thermoplastic polymer, made by the chemical industry and used in a wide variety of applications, including packaging, textiles , stationery, plastic parts and reusable containers of various types, laboratory equipment, loudspeakers, automotive components, and polymer banknotes....
      , polyester
      Polyester

      Polyester is a category of polymers which contain the ester functional group in their main chain. Although there are many polyesters, the term "polyester" as a specific material most commonly refers to polyethylene terephthalate ....
      , polyurethane
      Polyurethane

      A polyurethane, commonly abbreviated PU, is any polymer consisting of a chain of organic chemistry units joined by carbamate links. Polyurethane polymers are formed by reacting a monomer containing at least two isocyanate functional groups with another monomer containing at least two alcohol groups in the presence of a catalyst....
      , polymethyl methacrylate, polyvinyl chloride
      Polyvinyl chloride

      Polyvinyl chloride, commonly abbreviated PVC, is the third most widely used thermoplastic polymer after polyethylene and polypropylene....
      , nylon
      Nylon

      Nylon is a generic designation for a family of synthetic polymers known generically as polyamides and first produced on February 28, 1935 by Wallace Carothers at DuPont....
      , rayon
      Rayon

      Rayon is a manufactured regenerated cellulose fiber. Because it is produced from naturally occurring polymers, it is neither a truly synthetic fiber nor a natural fiber; it is a semi-synthetic fiber ....
      , celluloid
      Celluloid

      Celluloid is the name of a class of Chemical compound created from nitrocellulose and camphor, plus dyes and other agents. Generally regarded to be the first thermoplastic, it was first created as Parkesine in 1856 and as Xylonite in 1869 before being registered as Celluloid in 1870....
      , silicone
      Silicone

      Silicones are largely inert, man-made compounds with a wide variety of forms and uses. Typically heat-resistant, nonstick, and rubberlike, they are commonly used in cookware, medicine, sealants, adhesives, lubricants, and insulation....
      , fiberglass
      Fiberglass

      Fiberglass, , is material made from extremely fine fibers of glass. It is used as a reinforcing agent for many polymer products; the resulting composite material, properly known as fiber-reinforced polymer or glass-reinforced plastic , is called "fiberglass" in popular usage....
    • thermosetting plastic
      Thermosetting plastic

      Thermosetting plastics are polymer materials that irreversibly Curing form. The cure may be done through heat , through a chemical reaction , or irradiation such as electron beam processing....
      s: vulcanized
      Vulcanization

      Vulcanization refers to a specific curing process of rubber involving high heat and the addition of sulfur or other equivalent curatives. It is a chemical process in which polymer molecules are linked to other polymer molecules by atomic bridges composed of sulfur atoms or carbon to carbon bonds....
       rubber
      Rubber

      Natural rubber is an elastomer?an Elasticity_ hydrocarbon polymer?that was originally derived from a milky colloidal suspension, or latex , found in the sap of some plants....
      , Bakelite
      Bakelite

      Bakelite is a material based on the thermosetting plastic phenol formaldehyde resin polyoxybenzylmethylenglycolanhydride, developed in 1907?1909 by Demographics of Belgium Dr....
      , Kevlar
      Kevlar

      Kevlar is the registered trademark for a light, strong aramid synthetic fiber, related to other aramids such as Nomex and Technora.Developed at DuPont in 1965 by Stephanie Kwolek it was first commercially used in the early 1970s as a replacement for steel in racing tires....
      , epoxy
      Epoxy

      In chemistry, epoxy or polyepoxide is a thermosetting epoxide polymer that cures when mixed with a catalyst agent or hardener. Most common epoxy resins are produced from a reaction between epichlorohydrin and bisphenol-A....


Polymers form by polymerization
Polymerization

In polymer chemistry, polymerization is a process of reacting monomer molecules together in a chemical reaction to form three-dimensional networks or polymer chains....
 of monomer
Monomer

A monomer is a small molecule that may become Chemistry chemical bonding to other monomers to form a polymer....
s. A polymer is chemically described by its degree of polymerisation, molar mass distribution
Molar mass distribution

In linear polymers the individual polymer chains rarely have the exact same degree of polymerization and molar mass, and there is always a distribution around an average value....
, tacticity
Tacticity

Tacticity is the relative stereochemistry of adjacent chirality centers within a macromolecule . The practical significance of tacticity rests in the link between tacticity and the physical properties of the polymer....
, copolymer distribution, the degree of branching
Branching (chemistry)

In polymer chemistry, branching occurs by the replacement of a substituent, e.g, a hydrogen atom, on a monomer subunit, by another covalent bond chain of that polymer; or, in the case of a graft copolymer, by a Chain of another type....
, by its end-group
End-group

An end-group in polymer chemistry is a constitutional unit that is an extremity of a macromolecule or oligomer molecule. For example the end-group of a PET polyester may be an alcohol group or a carboxylic acid group....
s, crosslinks
Cross-link

Cross-links are bonds that link one polymer chain to another. They can be covalent bonds or ionic bonds. "Polymer chains" can refer to synthetic polymers or natural polymers ....
, crystallinity
Crystallinity

Crystallinity refers to the degree of structural order in a solid. In a crystal, the atoms or molecules are arranged in a regular, periodic manner....
 and thermal properties such as its glass transition temperature
Glass transition temperature

The Glass transition temperature, Tg, is the temperature at which an amorphous solid, such as glass or a polymer, becomes wikt:brittle on cooling, or soft on heating....
 and melting temperature. Polymers in solution
Solution

In chemistry, a solution is a homogeneous mixture composed of two or more substances. In such a mixture, a solute is dissolved in another substance, known as a solvent....
 have special characteristics with respect to solubility
Solubility

Solubility is often seen as a property of a substance; for instance the solubility of a solid substance usually refers to the concentration of the substance in a liquid that has reached equilibrium with the substance in solid phase ....
, viscosity
Viscosity

Viscosity is a measure of the Drag of a fluid which is being deformed by either shear stress or extensional stress. In everyday terms , viscosity is "thickness"....
 and gelation
Gel

A gel is a solid, gelatin material that can have properties ranging from soft and weak to hard and tough. Gels are defined as a substantially dilute crosslinked system, which exhibits no flow when in the steady-state....
.

History


The work of Henri Braconnot
Henri Braconnot

Henri Braconnot was a French chemist and pharmacist.He was born in Commercy, his father being a counsel at the local parliament. At the death of his father, in 1787, Henri began his instruction in an elementary school in Commercy and then with private teachers....
 in 1777 and the work ofChristian Schönbein in 1846 led to the discovery of nitrocellulose
Nitrocellulose

Nitrocellulose is a highly flammable compound formed by nitrating cellulose through exposure to nitric acid or another powerful nitrating agent....
, which, when treated with camphor
Camphor

Camphor is a waxy, white or transparent solid with a strong, aromatic odor. It is a terpenoid with the chemical formula carbon10hydrogen16oxygen....
 produced celluloid
Celluloid

Celluloid is the name of a class of Chemical compound created from nitrocellulose and camphor, plus dyes and other agents. Generally regarded to be the first thermoplastic, it was first created as Parkesine in 1856 and as Xylonite in 1869 before being registered as Celluloid in 1870....
. Dissolved in ether
Ether

Ether is a class of organic compounds which contain an ether functional group ? an oxygen atom connected to two alkyl or aryl groups ? of general formula R?O?R....
 or acetone
Acetone

Acetone is the organic compound with the chemical formula OC2. This colorless, mobile, flammable liquid is the simplest example of the ketones....
, it is collodion
Collodion

Collodion an inflammable, syrupy solution of Nitrocellulose in ether and alcohol, used as a surgical dressing or to hold dressings in place. When painted on the skin, collodion dries to form a flexible cellulose film....
, used as a wound
Wound

In medicine, a wound is a type of injury in which the skin is torn, cut or punctured , or where blunt force physical trauma causes a bruise . In pathology, it specifically refers to a sharp injury which damages the dermis of the skin....
 dressing since the U.S. Civil War
American Civil War

The American Civil War , also known as the War Between the States and several Naming the American Civil War, was a civil war in the United States....
. Cellulose acetate
Cellulose acetate

Cellulose acetate, first prepared in 1865, is the acetate ester of cellulose. Cellulose acetate is used as a film base in photography, and as a component in some adhesives; it is also used as a synthetic fiber....
 was first prepared in 1865. In 1834, Friedrich Ludersdorf and Nathaniel Hayward independently discovered
Plastic

Plastic is the general common term for a wide range of synthetic or semisynthetic organic chemistry solid materials suitable for the manufacture of industrial products....
 that adding sulfur to raw natural rubber
Rubber

Natural rubber is an elastomer?an Elasticity_ hydrocarbon polymer?that was originally derived from a milky colloidal suspension, or latex , found in the sap of some plants....
 (polyisoprene
Isoprene

Isoprene is a common synonym for the chemical compound 2-methyl-1,3-butadiene. It is commonly used in industry, is an important biological material, and can be a harmful environmental pollutant and toxicant when present in excess quantities....
) helped prevent the material from becoming sticky. In 1844 Charles Goodyear
Charles Goodyear

Charles Goodyear was the first American to vulcanized rubber, a process which he discovered in 1839 and patented on June 15, 1844. Although Goodyear is often credited with its invention, modern evidence has proven that the Mesoamericans used stabilized rubber for balls and other objects as early as 1600 BC....
 received a U.S. patent for vulcanizing
Vulcanization

Vulcanization refers to a specific curing process of rubber involving high heat and the addition of sulfur or other equivalent curatives. It is a chemical process in which polymer molecules are linked to other polymer molecules by atomic bridges composed of sulfur atoms or carbon to carbon bonds....
 rubber with sulfur
Sulfur

Sulfur or sulphur is the chemical element that has the atomic number 16. It is denoted with the symbol S. It is an abundant Valence non-metal....
 and heat. Thomas Hancock
Thomas Hancock

Thomas Hancock Victoria Cross was an England recipient of the Victoria Cross, the highest and most prestigious award for gallantry in the face of the enemy that can be awarded to United Kingdom and Commonwealth of Nations forces....
 had received a patent for the same process in the UK the year before.

In 1884 Hilaire de Chardonnet
Hilaire de Chardonnet

Hilaire de Chardonnet was a France engineer and industrialist from Besan?on, inventor of artificial silk.He called his new invention "Chardonnet silk" and displayed it in the Exposition Universelle ...
 started the first artificial fiber
Fiber

Fiber or fibre is a class of materials that are continuous filaments or are in discrete elongated pieces, similar to lengths of yarn. They are very important in the biology of both plants and animals, for holding tissue s together....
 plant based on regenerated cellulose
Cellulose

File:Cellulose Sessel.svgCellulose is an organic compound with the chemical formula , a polysaccharide consisting of a linear chain of several hundred to over ten thousand ? linked D-glucose units....
, or viscose
Viscose

Viscose is a viscous organic liquid used to make rayon and cellophane. Viscose is becoming synonymous with rayon, a soft material, used in mostly tops, coats and jackets....
 rayon
Rayon

Rayon is a manufactured regenerated cellulose fiber. Because it is produced from naturally occurring polymers, it is neither a truly synthetic fiber nor a natural fiber; it is a semi-synthetic fiber ....
, as a substitute for silk
Silk

Silk is a natural protein fiber, some forms of which can be weaving into textiles. The best-known type of silk is obtained from Pupa#Cocoons made by the larvae of the mulberry silkworm Bombyx mori reared in captivity ....
, but it was very flammable. In 1907 Leo Baekeland
Leo Baekeland

Leo Hendrik Baekeland was a Demographics of Belgium chemist who invented Velox photographic paper and Bakelite , an inexpensive, nonflammable, versatile, and popular plastic....
 invented the first synthetic
Chemical synthesis

In chemistry, chemical synthesis is purposeful execution of chemical reactions in order to get a product , or several products. This happens by physics and chemical manipulations usually involving one or more reactions....
 polymer, a thermosetting phenol
Phenol

Phenol, also known as carbolic acid, is a toxic, white crystalline solid with a sweet tarry odor, commonly referred to as a "hospital smell"....
-formaldehyde
Formaldehyde

Formaldehyde is a chemical compound with the chemical formula H2CO. It is the simplest aldehyde. Formaldehyde exists in several forms aside from H2CO: the cyclic trimer trioxane and the polymer Polyoxymethylene....
 resin called Bakelite
Bakelite

Bakelite is a material based on the thermosetting plastic phenol formaldehyde resin polyoxybenzylmethylenglycolanhydride, developed in 1907?1909 by Demographics of Belgium Dr....
. Cellophane
Cellophane

Cellophane is a thin, transparent sheet made of regenerated cellulose. Its low permeability to air, oils and Fats, and bacterium makes it useful for food packaging....
 was invented in 1908 by Jocques Brandenberger who squirted sheets of viscose rayon into an acid
Acid

An acid is traditionally considered any chemical compound that, when dissolved in water, gives a solution with a hydrogen ion Activity greater than in pure water, i.e....
 bath.

In 1922 Hermann Staudinger
Hermann Staudinger

Hermann Staudinger was a German chemist who demonstrated the existence of macromolecules which he characterized as polymers. For this work he received the 1953 Nobel Prize in Chemistry....
 was the first to propose that polymers consisted of long chains of atoms held together by covalent bond
Covalent bond

A covalent bond is a form of chemical bonding that is characterized by the sharing of pairs of electrons between atoms, or between atoms and other covalent bonds....
s. He also proposed to name these compounds macromolecule
Macromolecule

The term macromolecule by definition implies "large molecule". In the context of biochemistry, the term may be applied to the four conventional biopolymers , as well as non-polymeric molecules with large molecular mass such as macrocycles....
s. Before that, scientist
Scientist

A scientist, in the broadest sense, refers to any person that engages in a system activity to acquire knowledge or an individual that engages in such practices and traditions that are linked to schools of thought or philosophy....
s believed that polymers were clusters of small molecule
Molecule

In chemistry, a molecule is defined as a sufficiently stable, electric charge neutral group of at least two atoms in a definite arrangement held together by very strong chemical bonds....
s (called colloid
Colloid

A colloid is a type of chemical mixture where one substance is dispersed evenly throughout another. The particles of the dispersed substance are only suspended in the mixture, unlike a solution, where they are completely dissolved within....
s), without definite molecular weights
Molecular mass

The molecular mass of a chemical compound, frequently referred by the older term molecular weight and abbreviated as MW, is the mass of one molecule of that substance, relative to the unified atomic mass unit u ....
, held together by an unknown force
Force

In physics, a force is that which can cause an object with mass to change its velocity. Force has both Euclidean_vector#Length of a vector and Direction , making it a Vector quantity....
. Staudinger received the Nobel Prize in Chemistry
Nobel Prize in Chemistry

The Nobel Prize in Chemistry is awarded annually by the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences to scientists in the various fields of chemistry. It is one of the five Nobel Prizes established by the will of Alfred Nobel in 1895, awarded for outstanding contributions in chemistry, Nobel Prize in Physics, Nobel Prize in Literature, Nobel Peace Pri...
 in 1953. Wallace Carothers
Wallace Carothers

Wallace Hume Carothers was an United States chemist, inventor and the leader of organic chemistry at DuPont, credited with the invention of Nylon....
 invented the first synthetic rubber called neoprene
Neoprene

Neoprene or polychloroprene is a family of synthetic rubbers that are produced by polymerization of chloroprene. It is used in a wide variety of applications, such as in wetsuits, laptop sleeves, orthopedic braces , electricity electrical insulation, and automobile fan belt s....
 in 1931, the first polyester
Polyester

Polyester is a category of polymers which contain the ester functional group in their main chain. Although there are many polyesters, the term "polyester" as a specific material most commonly refers to polyethylene terephthalate ....
, and went on to invent nylon
Nylon

Nylon is a generic designation for a family of synthetic polymers known generically as polyamides and first produced on February 28, 1935 by Wallace Carothers at DuPont....
, a true silk replacement, in 1935. Paul Flory
Paul Flory

Paul John Flory was an American chemist who was known for his prodigious volume of work in the field of polymers, or macromolecules. He was a leading pioneer in understanding the behavior of polymers in solution....
 was awarded the Nobel Prize in Chemistry
Nobel Prize in Chemistry

The Nobel Prize in Chemistry is awarded annually by the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences to scientists in the various fields of chemistry. It is one of the five Nobel Prizes established by the will of Alfred Nobel in 1895, awarded for outstanding contributions in chemistry, Nobel Prize in Physics, Nobel Prize in Literature, Nobel Peace Pri...
 in 1974 for his work on polymer random coil
Random coil

A random coil is a polymer conformation where the monomer subunits are oriented randomness while still being chemical bond to graph units. It is not one specific shape, but a statistics distribution of shapes for all the chains in a statistical population of macromolecules....
 configurations in solution in the 1950s. Stephanie Kwolek
Stephanie Kwolek

Stephanie Kwolek is an United States chemist who invented poly-paraphenylene terephtalamide—better known as Kevlar. She was born in the Pittsburgh suburb of New Kensington, Pennsylvania, Pennsylvania...
 developed an aramid
Aramid

Aramid fibers are a class of heat-resistant and strong synthetic fibers. They are used in aerospace and military applications, for ballistic rated bulletproof vest cloth, and as an asbestos substitute....
, or aromatic nylon named Kevlar
Kevlar

Kevlar is the registered trademark for a light, strong aramid synthetic fiber, related to other aramids such as Nomex and Technora.Developed at DuPont in 1965 by Stephanie Kwolek it was first commercially used in the early 1970s as a replacement for steel in racing tires....
, patented in 1966.

There are now a large number of commercial
Commerce

Commerce is a division of trade or production, costs, and pricing which deals with the Trade of goods and service from production, costs, and pricing to final consumer....
 polymers, including composite material
Composite material

Composite materials are engineered materials made from two or more constituent materials with significantly different physical or chemical properties which remain separate and distinct on a macroscopic level within the finished structure....
s such as carbon fiber
Carbon fiber

Carbon fiber or is a material consisting of extremely thin fibers about 0.005?0.010 mm in diameter and composed mostly of carbon atoms. The carbon atoms are bonded together in microscopic crystals that are more or less aligned parallel to the long axis of the fiber....
-epoxy
Epoxy

In chemistry, epoxy or polyepoxide is a thermosetting epoxide polymer that cures when mixed with a catalyst agent or hardener. Most common epoxy resins are produced from a reaction between epichlorohydrin and bisphenol-A....
, polystyrene
Polystyrene

Polystyrene , sometimes abbreviated PS, is an Aromaticity polymer made from the aromatic monomer styrene, a liquid hydrocarbon that is commercially manufactured from petroleum by the chemical industry....
-polybutadiene
Polybutadiene

Polybutadiene is a synthetic rubber that is a polymer formed from the polymerization of the monomer 1,3-butadiene. It has a high resistance to wear and is used especially in the Tire manufacturing of tires....
 (HIPS), acrylonitrile
Acrylonitrile

Acrylonitrile is the chemical compound with the formula CH2CHCN. This pungent-smelling colorless liquid often appears yellow due to impurities....
-butadiene-styrene
Styrene

Styrene, also known as vinyl benzene as well as many other names , is an organic compound with the chemical formula C6H5CH=CH2....
 (ABS), and other such materials that combine the best properties of their various components, including polymers designed to work at high temperature
Temperature

In physics, temperature is a physical property of a Physical system that underlies the common notions of hot and cold; something that feels hotter generally has the greater temperature....
s in automobile
Automobile

An automobile or motor car is a wheeled motor vehicle for transportation passengers, which also carries its own car engine or motor. Most definitions of the term specify that automobiles are designed to run primarily on roads, to have seating for one to eight people, to typically have four wheels, and to be constructed principally f...
 engine
Engine

An engine is a mechanical device that produces some form of output from a given input.An engine whose purpose is to produce kinetic energy output from a fuel is called a Wiktionary:prime mover; alternatively, a motor is a device which produces kinetic energy from a preprocessed "fuel" ....
s.

See also

  • Radical polymerization
    Radical polymerization

    Radical polymerization is a type of polymerization in which the reactive center of a polymer chain consists of a radical .The polymerization reaction is initiated by three classes of radical initiators:...
  • RAFT (chemistry)
    RAFT (chemistry)

    RAFT or Reversible addition–fragmentation chain transfer is a form of Living polymerization.Reversible addition–fragmentation chain transfer polymerization was discovered by the in 1998....
  • Robert Gilbert


External links