TABLE OF CONTENTS [*] [ ]
The fate of an engineering resin begins with polymerization technology. Finished product properties and applications are largely allowable or disallowed according to the choice of polymerization methods, monomers, polymerization process conditions, and catalysts. The changing choices for polymerization to improve polymer functionality and costs make information on the chemistry of polymerization especially important. Engineering thermoplastics polymerization methods influence polymer compositions, product design, properties, and processes. In Part 1, products and design are described in Chap. 2, properties in Chap. 3, and processes in Chap. 4. In Part 2, the chapters are written by experts at principal engineering resin producing companies world-wide that produce the polymer that is their chapter subject; except Chap. 5, "Polyacetals," which is prepared by the editor of this handbook, Jim Margolis of Margolis Polymers.
The chemistry of polymerization for polymeric macromolecules differs significantly from that of smaller molecules. Small molecules are assumed to be the same length and the same molecular weight (MW). Styrene monomer MW is 104.15 g/mol, and propylene monomer is 42.08 g/mol. For these low-molecular-weight molecules MW = W/N, where W = total sample weight and N = number of moles in the sample. Macromolecule MW and molecular weight distribution (MWD) are affected by polymerization conditions. Macromolecules are polydispersed; i.e., macromolecules have different chain lengths and different molecular...
