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PET, a polyester, is a chemical feedstock in polymer industry. Its synthesis
may follow either of two ways ...
Carbon atoms can bond to up to four other atoms. The four neighboring atoms
of each carbon atom form a tetrahedron, i.e., a pyramid-shaped polyhedron.
This was a key scientific discovery in the late 19th century. Several carbon
atoms can bond to each other to form chains and branches in many different combinations, sometimes yielding extremely long molecular chains. The building blocks of such polymers are small molecules (monomers).
Polymers have become indispensable in our everyday life. They are incorporated
into almost every technical material to modify its properties …
Polymerizing Ethylene and Propylene to Polyethylene and Polypropylene.
-> MoreArtificial skin has been laboratory-grown on a polymer scaffold and can be used
for healing chronic wounds of patients with ulcers caused by insufficient blood
flow (Ulcus cruris).
This timeline highlights the most fundamentally important inventions and
research results leading to a better understanding of polymers and to the
development of innovative polymer applications in medicine.
Bakelite, one of the first plastics, was invented by Leo Baekeland in 1909. Its
rapid success sparked a flurry of synthesis investigations and innovations in both America and Europe.
