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chemistry of industrial polymers: Quick Facts

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Figure 1: Three common polymer structures. The linear, branched, and network architectures are represented (from top), respectively, by high-density polyethylene (HDPE), low-density polyethylene (LDPE), and phenol formaldehyde (PF). The chemical structure and molecular structure of highlighted regions are also shown.
Figure 2: Amorphous and semicrystalline polymer morphologies. (Top) Volume-temperature diagram for amorphous and semicrystalline polymers, showing volume increasing with temperature; (bottom) schematic diagram of the semicrystalline morphology, showing amorphous regions and crystallites.
Diagram illustrating a homopolymer arrangement using polyvinyl chloride as an example, showing a chain of identical repeating vinyl chloride units with the chemical structure highlighted.
random copolymer arrangement of styrene-butadiene copolymer
alternating copolymer arrangement of styrene-maleic anhydride copolymer
Figure 3D: The block copolymer arrangement of styrene-isoprene copolymer. Each coloured ball in the molecular structure diagram represents a styrene or isoprene repeating unit as shown in the chemical structure formula.
Figure 3E: The graft copolymer arrangement of ethylene-acrylonitrile copolymer. Each coloured ball in the molecular structure diagram represents an ethylene or acrylonitrile repeating unit as shown in the chemical structure formula.
Figure 4: The formation of a branched polyethylene structure through the process of backbiting, or chain transfer.
Figure 5: The polymerization of ethylene (CH2=CH2) using a complex organometallic catalyst (see text).
Diagram showing the solution polymerization process of ethylene using Ziegler-Natta catalysts, with labeled vessels and flow arrows depicting the movement of ethylene gas, solvent, catalyst, and resulting polyethylene through reactors, filters, and dryers. A key explains the slurry components at each stage.
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