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Related Concept Videos

Polymers: Molecular Weight Distribution01:10

Polymers: Molecular Weight Distribution

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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.
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Polymer Classification: Architecture01:14

Polymer Classification: Architecture

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Polymers are classified as linear or branched on the basis of their chain architecture. The polymer chains in linear polymers have a long chain-like structure with minimal to no branching at all. Even if a polymer features large substituent groups on the monomer, which appear as branches to the skeleton, it is not considered a branched polymer. A branched polymer contains secondary polymer chains that arise from the main polymer chain. The branching occurs when the polymer growth shifts from...
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Polymer Classification: Stereospecificity01:26

Polymer Classification: Stereospecificity

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Polymerization generates chiral centers along the entire backbone of a polymer chain. Accordingly, the stereochemistry of the substituent group has a significant effect on polymer properties. Polymers formed from monosubstituted alkene monomers feature chiral carbons at every alternate position in the polymer backbone. Relative to the predominant orientation of substituents at the adjacent chiral carbons, the polymer can exist in three different configurations: isotactic, syndiotactic, and...
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Polymer Classification: Crystallinity01:21

Polymer Classification: Crystallinity

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Unlike ionic or small covalent molecules, polymers do not form crystalline solids due to the diffusion limitations of their long-chain structures. However, polymers contain microscopic crystalline domains separated by amorphous domains.
Crystalline domains are the regions where polymer chains are aligned in an orderly manner and held together in proximity by intermolecular forces. For example, chains in the crystalline domains of polyethylene and nylon are bound together by van der Waals...
3.6K
Step-Growth Polymerization: Overview01:03

Step-Growth Polymerization: Overview

4.0K
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...
4.0K
Polymers: Defining Molecular Weight01:01

Polymers: Defining Molecular Weight

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Unlike small molecules with definite molecular weights, polymers are a mixture of individual polymer chains of varying lengths, each with a unique molecular weight.  So, the molecular weight of a polymer is expressed as an average value based on the average size of the polymer chains. The two most common forms of averages used for polymers are the number average molecular weight and weight average molecular weight.
The number average molecular weight (Mn) is the summation of the number...
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Polymer Microarrays for High Throughput Discovery of Biomaterials
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PolyDAT: A Generic Data Schema for Polymer Characterization.

Tzyy-Shyang Lin1, Nathan J Rebello1, Haley K Beech1

  • 1Department of Chemical Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 77 Massachusetts Avenue, Cambridge, Massachusetts 02139, United States.

Journal of Chemical Information and Modeling
|February 22, 2021
PubMed
Summary
This summary is machine-generated.

Polymer characterization data is often nonstandard, hindering polymer informatics. This study introduces PolyDAT, a universal schema for organizing structural data, enabling comprehensive polymer profiling and data sharing.

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Area of Science:

  • Polymer Science
  • Materials Informatics
  • Computational Chemistry

Background:

  • Polymers are stochastic materials with complex molecular distributions.
  • Current polymer characterization methods yield disparate data, impeding polymer informatics development.
  • Lack of standardization in data aggregation and reporting hinders community-wide data sharing.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To propose a universal schema, PolyDAT, for organizing polymer structural characterization data.
  • To establish a standardized digital format for polymer data to accelerate polymer informatics.
  • To facilitate comprehensive polymer profiling through a multi-species reaction network construct.

Main Methods:

  • Developed PolyDAT, a schema with a minimal, congruent vocabulary applicable across polymer science domains.
  • Implemented a multi-species reaction network construct to collect all relevant characterization data.
  • Designed generic templates for characterization techniques to ensure flexibility and broad applicability.

Main Results:

  • PolyDAT provides a standardized format for digitalizing polymer characterization data.
  • The schema enables comprehensive polymer profiling by integrating data from relevant species.
  • PolyDAT serves as an extension to BigSMILES, offering quantitative information and a channel for data sharing.

Conclusions:

  • PolyDAT offers a universal solution for organizing disparate polymer characterization data.
  • The proposed schema standardizes data formats, significantly advancing polymer informatics.
  • PolyDAT promotes efficient data sharing and collaboration within the polymer research community.