Introduction to Polymers

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Introduction to Polymers

• Professor Dave Haddleton

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What is a Polymer?    What are the properties of
a polymer?    Why are polymers useful?    What
are polymers used for?    Do polymers directly
effect our lives?    How can we make
polymers?    How can we characterise polymers?
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• What are polymers?

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Definitions

• Polymer
• A high molecular weight molecule. Typically MWt
  10,000 with a MWt distribution. Synthetic
  Polymers contain repeat Units which can be used
  to describe the molecule

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When the two monomers are arranged in an
alternating fashion, the polymer is called, of
course, an alternating copolymer
-A-B-A-B-A-B-A-B-A-B-
In a random copolymer, the two monomers
may follow in any order
-A-A-B-A-B-B-B-A-B-A-A-B-
In a block
copolymer, all of one type of monomer are
grouped together, and all of the other are
grouped together. A block copolymer can be
thought of as two homopolymers joined together
at the ends A-A-A-A-A-A-A-B-B-B-B-B-B-B-B-

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Control of Macromolecular Structure
? Topology
? Composition
Liege (3nd POLYCAT Meeting) June 2002
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What are polymers used for?
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Thermal transitions

• Tm Crystalline melting temperature
• Tg Glass transition temperature

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Glass Transition Temperature

• Tg
• The temperature at which an amorphous polymer
  changes from a glass into a rubber

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Amorphous Polymers

• Polystyrene
• Poly(methyl methacrylate)
• PVC
• PET
• PC

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Polyethylene terephthalate
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Polyamides, Nylons
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Kevlar
Aromatic Polyamide
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Other Web Sites

• Notes from Polymer chemistry course at
  Missouri-Rolla
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• http//www.umr.edu/jstoffer/CHEM381/index.html
• http//www.umr.edu/jstoffer/?physicalpolymerche
  mistry
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• General Polymer chemistry
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• http//www.umr.edu/poly/
• http//wwwumr.edu80/poly/otherservers.html
• http//www.polymers.com/
• http//www.psrc.usm.edu/polyclass/macrogalleria.ht
  ml