Soul of Chemistry

Notes on Polymer Chemistry for BSc Honours Introduction: The word polymer comes from the greek words 'poly' meaning many and 'meros' meaning parts. Thus a polymer is a large molecule made up of smaller units called monomers that are chemically linked together. n CH 2 =CH 2  ----------> -(CH 2 -CH 2 )- n       These polymers can found in nature or can be synthetically prepared or man-made. Some examples of natural polymers are DNA, Proteins, polysaccharides, cellulose, polypeptide and natural rubber. Similarly some examples of man made polymers include polythene, PVC, Polyamides, Nylon etc. Difference between polymers and macromolecules: We have already defined polymers which necessarily contain repeating monomer units. For example: Polythene contains the repeating unit of ethene monomer unit.     M acromolecules have a bigger molecular structure and higher molecular weight but have no repeating units. For example: fat molecules contain glycerol and dif...