Polymer Chemistry
 | Name : Polymer Chemistry File Type : Size : 174 KB |
RSC_COP_ch001.qxd 2/11/2006 12:15 PM Page 1 CHAPTER 1 Polymer Chemistry 1.1 BASIC CONCEPTS A polymer is a large molecule built up from numerous smaller molecules. These large molecules may be linear, slightly branched, or highly interconnected. In the latter case the structure develops into a large three-dimensional network. The small molecules used as the basic building blocks for these large molecules are known as monomers. For example the commercially important material poly(vinyl chloride) is made from the monomer vinyl chloride. The repeat unit in the polymer usually corresponds to the monomer from which the polymer was made. There are exceptions to this, though. Poly(vinyl alcohol) is formally considered to be made up of vinyl alcohol (CH2CHOH) repeat units but there is, in fact, no such monomer as vinyl alcohol. The appropriate molecular unit exists in the alternative tautomeric form, ethanal CH3CHO. To make this polymer, it is necessary first to prepare poly(vinyl ethanoate) from the monomer vinyl ethanoate, and Ebook Relate: polymer ebook vinyl ebook monomer ebook molecules ebook large ebook poly vinyl ebook the monomer ebook vinyl alcohol ebook monomer vinyl ebook the monomer vinyl ebook these large molecules ebook |
| Server | Status |
| www.rsc.org | Alive |
