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Crystals and crystallinity in polymeric materials.
Paolo Corradini1, Finizia Auriemma, Claudio De Rosa
1Dipartimento di Chimica, Università di Napoli Federico II, Complesso Monte Sant'Angelo, Via Cintia, 80126 Napoli, Italy. paolo.corradini@unina.it
Accounts of Chemical Research
|May 17, 2006
Summary
Crystallinity in synthetic macromolecules can coexist with significant structural disorder. This research redefines polymer crystals, explaining their ability to form ordered structures despite inherent disorder.
Area of Science:
- Polymer Science
- Materials Science
- Crystallography
Background:
- Traditional crystallography defines crystals by three-dimensional long-range order of atoms.
- Polymeric materials often exhibit complex structures with inherent disorder.
- Understanding polymer crystallinity is crucial for material properties and applications.
Purpose of the Study:
- To present a new perspective on crystallinity and crystal formation in synthetic macromolecules.
- To reconcile the presence of disorder with the existence of crystalline phases in polymers.
- To propose a model for understanding the ordered structures in semicrystalline polymers.
Main Methods:
- Discussion of idealized limit models for crystalline structures in polymers.
- Analysis of structural features beyond single atoms, such as chain axes.
- Conceptual framework for understanding order in disordered systems.
Main Results:
- Crystallinity in polymers can occur alongside substantial structural disorder.
- Long-range order in polymer crystals can be based on non-point-centered features like chain axes.
- A new conceptualization of polymer crystals accommodates inherent disorder.
Conclusions:
- The proposed view explains how polymers can achieve crystallinity despite high structural disorder.
- This framework advances the understanding of semicrystalline polymeric materials.
- The findings offer new insights into the nature of polymer crystallization.