Polymers have for very long been a fundamental piece of our everyday lives so much so that examples are available almost ubiquitously. We are apt to have the feeling which leads us to imagine that polymers are only plastics useful for packaging, in household objects as well as making fibres, however is the tip with the iceberg.
Polymers are widely-used in many applications you will possibly not have thought much about. This site enlightens you regarding the story behind polymers and how it has evolved since that time to provide several functions across a host of industries.
Origin of polymer science
Humans have advantage of the versatility of polymers since way back when by means of oils, tars, resins and gums. However, it was not until the industrial revolution how the polymer industry started to realize. In reality, the birth of polymer science might be traced time for the mid-nineteenth century. From the 1830s, Charles Goodyear developed the vulcanization method that transformed the sticky latex of natural rubber in to a useful elastomer for tire use. In 1909, Leo Hendrik Baekeland designed a resin from two very common chemicals, phenol and formaldehyde. The response between these chemicals led the way to build up a resin, called Bakelite, named after him. It had been this resin that served like a harbinger to many with the common polymers that people use today. The saying “polymer” is derived from the Greek roots “poly” and “mer,” which assembled means “many parts.” Polymeric substances consist of many chemical units called monomers, which are gathered into large molecular chains composed of a large number of atoms.
Classification of polymers
On such basis as their origin, thermoplastic resin can be viewed as synthetic or natural polymers. Natural polymers are the type polymers that exist in nature knowning that which are isolated from plant and animal resources. Starch, cellulose, proteins, natural rubber etc. are a couple of instances of natural polymers. Though they are processed to find the end result, since the basic material comes from a natural source, these polymers are called as natural polymers. Natural rubber via tree latex it’s essentially a polymer made from isoprene units with a portion of impurities within it.
With this context, biopolymers will also be significant. There’s large number of biopolymers including polysaccharides, polyesters, and polyamides. These are naturally manufactured by microorganisms. The genetic manipulation of microorganisms makes means for enormous prospect of the biotechnological manufacture of biopolymers with tailored properties suited to high-value medical application including tissue engineering and drug delivery.
Synthetic polymers, as their name indicates, are synthesized from the laboratory or factory through 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 artificial fibres. Polymethyl methacrylate (PMMA) is but one such thermoplastic manufactured by the polymerization with the monomer, methyl methacrylate (MMA). PMMA is usually known as acrylic plastic and lends its properties to a variety of consumer product applications. Being both a thermoplastic and transparent plastic, acrylic is employed extensively from the automotive industry in trunk release handles, master cylinder, and dashboard lighting. Consumer items that use a constituent element of acrylic plastic include aquariums, motorcycle helmet lenses, paint, furniture, picture framing, and umbrella clamps, and others.
A number of the other synthetic polymers that people use in our everyday life include Nylons, utilized in fabrics and textiles, Teflon, utilized in non-stick pans and Polyvinyl Chloride, utilized in pipes.
As a leading manufacturer of SUMIPEX® PMMA polymer, Sumitomo Chemical is pleased to work with you in understanding its properties like a synthetic polymer. To learn more, reach out to us here.
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