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Related Concept Videos

Step-Growth Polymerization: Overview01:03

Step-Growth Polymerization: Overview

Step-growth or condensation polymerization is a stepwise reaction of bi or multifunctional monomers to form long-chain polymers. As all the monomers are reactive, most of the monomers are consumed at the early stages of the reaction to form small chains of reactive oligomers, which then combine to form long polymer chains in the late stages. Hence, the reaction has to proceed for a long time to achieve high molecular weight polymers.
Many natural and synthetic polymers are produced by...
Polymers: Molecular Weight Distribution01:10

Polymers: Molecular Weight Distribution

For any given polymer, the weight average molecular weight (Mw) is higher than, if not equal to, the number average molecular weight (Mn). The only situation in which the weight average molecular weight and the number average molecular weight are equal is when a polymer consists only of chains with equal molecular weight. However, this never happens in a synthetic polymer, since it is difficult to control the polymerization process up to a molecular level with accuracy to a hundred percent.
Polymers02:34

Polymers

The word polymer is derived from the Greek words “poly” which means “many” and “mer” which means “parts”. Polymers are long chains of molecules composed of repeating units of smaller molecules, known as monomers. They either occur naturally, such as DNA and proteins, or can be constructed synthetically, like plastics. They have varied structural characteristics, such as linear chains, branched chains, or complex networks, that contribute to the properties that they exhibit. Additionally,...
Polymers02:34

Polymers

The word polymer is derived from the Greek words “poly” which means “many” and “mer” which means “parts”. Polymers are long chains of molecules composed of repeating units of smaller molecules, known as monomers. They either occur naturally, such as DNA and proteins, or can be constructed synthetically, like plastics. They have varied structural characteristics, such as linear chains, branched chains, or complex networks, that contribute to the properties that they exhibit. Additionally,...
Molecular Weight of Step-Growth Polymers01:08

Molecular Weight of Step-Growth Polymers

Step growth polymerization involves bi or multifunctional monomers. Bifunctional monomers react to form linear step growth polymers, whereas multifunctional monomers react to form non-linear or branched polymers.
As the step-growth polymerization involves step-wise condensation of monomers, the molecular weight also builds up eventually. Consequently, high molecular weight polymers are obtained at the late stages of the polymerization, where 99% of monomers have been consumed.
The extent of the...
Radical Chain-Growth Polymerization: Overview01:10

Radical Chain-Growth Polymerization: Overview

Chain-growth or addition polymerization is successive addition reactions of monomers with a polymer chain. In radical chain-growth polymerization, the reaction proceeds via a free-radical intermediate. The free radical is formed from radical initiators, which spontaneously generate free radicals by homolytic fission. Organic peroxides (such as dibenzoyl peroxide, as shown in Figure 1) or azo compounds are popular radical initiators. A low concentration ratio of radical initiator to monomer is...

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Controlled Synthesis and Fluorescence Tracking of Highly Uniform Poly(N-isopropylacrylamide) Microgels
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Controlled Synthesis and Fluorescence Tracking of Highly Uniform Poly(N-isopropylacrylamide) Microgels

Published on: September 8, 2016

Counting primary loops in polymer gels.

Huaxing Zhou1, Jiyeon Woo, Alexandra M Cok

  • 1Department of Chemistry, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA 02139, USA.

Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America
|November 8, 2012
PubMed
Summary
This summary is machine-generated.

Researchers developed a new method to quantify primary loops, a common defect in polymer networks. This breakthrough allows for precise measurement of these imperfections, improving understanding of polymer mechanical properties.

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Area of Science:

  • Polymer Science
  • Materials Science
  • Chemical Engineering

Background:

  • Fundamental polymer network knowledge often assumes ideal structures.
  • Real polymer networks contain topological imperfections, like primary loops, that impair mechanical properties.
  • Existing theories lack experimental methods for quantifying these imperfections.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To present a conceptual framework for quantifying primary loops in polymer networks.
  • To enable precise measurement of primary loop defects.
  • To advance the understanding of polymer network structure-property relationships.

Main Methods:

  • Development of a novel conceptual framework for primary loop quantification.
  • Application of the framework to trifunctional polyethylene glycol (PEG)-based hydrogels.
  • Experimental measurement of primary loop junction fractions.

Main Results:

  • Successful implementation of a conceptual framework for primary loop quantification.
  • Measurement of the fraction of primary loop junctions in PEG-based hydrogels.
  • Demonstration of a viable experimental approach to characterize network defects.

Conclusions:

  • The developed framework enables precise quantification of primary loops in polymer networks.
  • This work provides a new tool for characterizing topological imperfections.
  • The findings are expected to stimulate further theoretical and experimental research in polymer network science.