Related topics: nanoparticles
Polymer
hideA polymer (from Greek πολύ-ς /po΄li-s/ much, many and μέρος /΄meros/ part) is a large molecule (macromolecule) composed of repeating structural units typically connected by covalent chemical bonds. While polymer in popular usage suggests plastic, the term actually refers to a large class of natural and synthetic materials with a variety of properties.
Due to the extraordinary range of properties accessible in polymeric materials , they have come to play an essential and ubiquitous role in everyday life - from plastics and elastomers on the one hand to natural biopolymers such as DNA and proteins that are essential for life on the other. A simple example is polyethylene, whose repeating unit is based on ethylene (IUPAC name ethene) monomer. Most commonly, as in this example, the continuously linked backbone of a polymer consists mainly of carbon atoms. However, other structures do exist; for example, elements such as silicon form familiar materials such as silicones, examples being silly putty and waterproof plumbing sealant. The backbone of DNA is in fact based on a phosphodiester bond, and repeating units of polysaccharides (e.g. cellulose) are joined together by glycosidic bonds via oxygen atoms.
Natural polymeric materials such as shellac, amber, and natural rubber have been in use for centuries. Biopolymers such as proteins and nucleic acids play crucial roles in biological processes. A variety of other natural polymers exist, such as cellulose, which is the main constituent of wood and paper.
The list of synthetic polymers includes synthetic rubber, Bakelite, neoprene, nylon, PVC, polystyrene, polyacrylonitrile, PVB, silicone, and many more.
Polymers are studied in the fields of polymer chemistry, polymer physics, and polymer science.
For more information about Polymer, read the full article at
Wikipedia.
This text uses material from Wikipedia and is available under the GNU Free Documentation License.
News tagged with polymer
UK fingerprint 'developer' can read a letter from its envelope
Nov 10, 2008 |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- UK scientists have discovered a fingerprint'“developer' which can highlight invisible prints on almost any surface – and read the text of a letter just from the envelope it was sent in.
How Did Evolution Begin?
Sep 28, 2009 |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- Life's ability to replicate itself is essential for evolution, yet even the simplest kind of replication requires a relatively complex system. So what kind of non-replicating system might ...
Scientists solve decade-long mystery of nanopillar formations
Oct 22, 2009 |
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Scientists at the California Institute of Technology have uncovered the physical mechanism by which arrays of nanoscale pillars can be grown on polymer films with very high precision, in potentially limitless ...
Scientists synthesize graphene-like material: Polymer with honeycomb structure
Nanotechnology / Nanomaterials
Nov 19, 2009 |
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Two-dimensional carbon layers, so-called graphenes, are regarded as a possible substitute for silicon in the semiconductor industry. The electronic properties of these layers can be varied by "building in" ...
New polymer that changes color instantly in response to external magnetic field (w/Video)
Jun 16, 2009 |
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A research team led by a chemist at the University of California, Riverside has fabricated microscopic polymer beads that change color instantly and reversibly when external magnetic fields acting upon the microspheres change ...
Polymers 'battered' with nanoparticles could create self healing paints and clever packaging
Nanotechnology / Nanomaterials
Nov 24, 2008 |
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Research chemists at the University of Warwick have devised an elegant process which simply and cheaply covers small particles of polymer with a layer of silica-based nanoparticles. The final result provides ...
Bioengineers succeed in producing plastic without the use of fossil fuels
Nov 23, 2009 |
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A team of pioneering South Korean scientists have succeeded in producing the polymers used for everyday plastics through bioengineering, rather than through the use of fossil fuel based chemicals. This groundbreaking research, ...
Liquid-OLED Offers More Light-Emitting Possibilities
Aug 14, 2009 |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- As organic light-emitting diodes (OLEDs) are poised to go mainstream in the near future, scientists continue to explore new twists on the technology. Recently, researchers have fabricated ...
Flexible Polymer Transistors 'Printed' Using Ultraviolet Light
Dec 19, 2008 |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- Computer and television displays made using flexible, bendable polymer materials are technologies of the future, promising roll-up computer monitors and other innovations. Scientists are making ...
Salt and Paper Battery May One Day Replace Lithium Batteries
Sep 15, 2009 |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- Salt and paper battery can be used in many low-power devices, such as medical implants, RFID tags, wireless sensors and smart cards. This battery uses a thin-film which makes it an attractive ...
Researchers create polymer solar cells with higher efficiency levels
Nov 26, 2008 |
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Currently, solar cells are difficult to handle, expensive to purchase and complicated to install. The hope is that consumers will one day be able to buy solar cells from their local hardware store and simply hang them like ...
One word: bioplastics
Nov 17, 2009 |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- Every year, more than 250 billion pounds of plastic are produced worldwide. Much of it ends up in the world's oceans, a fact that troubles MIT biology professor Anthony Sinskey.
Could a paper transistor offer an alternative to silicon?
Sep 22, 2009 |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- As technology advances, scientists look for ways to enhance electronic applications and devices. Indeed, electronics are getting smaller and more diverse. And as this happens, there is an increased requirement ...
Major advance in organic solar cells
Oct 19, 2009 |
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Professor Guillermo Bazan and a team of postgraduate researchers at UC Santa Barbara's Center for Polymers and Organic Solids (CPOS) today announced a major advance in the synthesis of organic polymers for plastic solar cells. ...
'Green' research results in new geopolymer concrete technology
Sep 29, 2009 |
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Dr. Erez Allouche, assistant professor of civil engineering at Louisiana Tech University and associate director of the Trenchless Technology Center, is conducting innovative research on geopolymer concrete ...
