Polymers have for very long been an integral part of our everyday lives so much so that examples can be found almost ubiquitously. We generally an impression leading us to imagine that polymers are merely plastics useful for packaging, in household objects as well as for making fibres, but this is just the tip of the iceberg.
Polymers are widely-used in all sorts of applications you do not have thought much about. This web site enlightens you regarding the story behind polymers and just how it’s evolved from the time to serve several functions across quite a few industries.
Origin of polymer science
Humans have good thing about the versatility of polymers for centuries available as oils, tars, resins and gums. However, it had not been before the industrial revolution that the polymer industry developed. In reality, the birth of polymer science may be traced back to the mid-nineteenth century. In the 1830s, Charles Goodyear developed the vulcanization procedure that transformed the sticky latex of natural rubber in to a useful elastomer for tire use. In 1909, Leo Hendrik Baekeland created resin from two quite normal chemicals, phenol and formaldehyde. The response between both of these chemicals led the way for the development of a resin, called Bakelite, named after him. It absolutely was this resin that served as being a harbinger to a lot of of the common polymers we use today. The phrase “polymer” is derived from the Greek roots “poly” and “mer,” which come up with means “many parts.” Polymeric substances are made of countless chemical units called monomers, which are joined together into large molecular chains made up of a large number of atoms.
Classification of polymers
Judging by their origin, acrylic glass may be viewed as synthetic or natural polymers. Natural polymers are the types polymers that happen in nature understanding that which are isolated from plant and animal resources. Starch, cellulose, proteins, natural rubber etc. are several examples of natural polymers. Though they may be processed to obtain the result, considering that the basic material develops from a natural source, these polymers are known as natural polymers. Natural rubber received from tree latex is basically a polymer produced from isoprene units using a portion of impurities inside.
With this context, biopolymers will also be significant. There is large number of biopolymers such as polysaccharides, polyesters, and polyamides. They are naturally created by microorganisms. The genetic manipulation of microorganisms makes means for enormous prospect of the biotechnological production of biopolymers with tailored properties suited to high-value medical application such as tissue engineering and drug delivery.
Synthetic polymers, his or her name indicates, are synthesized within the laboratory or factory by way of a series of chemical reactions from low molecular weight compounds. From the functional perspective they are often classified into four main categories: thermoplastics, thermosets, elastomers and synthetic fibres. Polymethyl methacrylate (PMMA) is certainly one such thermoplastic created by the polymerization of the monomer, methyl methacrylate (MMA). PMMA is usually known as acrylic plastic and lends its properties to a number of consumer product applications. Being both a thermoplastic and transparent plastic, acrylic can be used extensively within the automotive industry in trunk release handles, master cylinder, and dashboard lighting. Consumer goods that have a constituent component of acrylic plastic include aquariums, motorcycle helmet lenses, paint, furniture, picture framing, and umbrella clamps, among others.
Some of the other synthetic polymers we used in us include Nylons, found in fabrics and textiles, Teflon, found in non-stick pans and Polyvinyl Chloride, found in pipes.
Being a leading manufacturer of SUMIPEX® PMMA polymer, Sumitomo Chemical is pleased to help you to understand its properties as being a synthetic polymer. To know more, find us here.
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