Interest in preparing new polymers peaked about 1966. Since that time, industrial and government support for the synthesis and study of new polymers has steadily declined. Gone are the good days when government funds supported a great push to attain ulti mate thermal stability for organic polymeric materials. Gone are the good days when many chemical companies, encouraged by the obvious potential for rewards, had great interest and provided support for preparing new polymers. We now often hear managers say "we have enough polymers" or "all we need to do is find additional and better ways to use existing polymers. " The latter often in cludes the statement, "we can get the new materials that are wanted from polymer alloys or blends. " Interest in preparing new monomers has also waned, even though it is well recognized that monomers with special functionality are greatly needed to fine-tune existing polymers for specific tasks. Shrinkage of interest in new monomer and polymer research has not come about solely as a result of the obvious maturity of the polymers industry. Since uses for polymers continue to grow and there is still room for good concepts to study, lack of market growth and fields of study have probably not significantly contribu ted to that shrinkage.

The progressive dwindling of fossil resources, coupled with the drastic increase in oil prices, have sparked a feverish activity in search of alternatives based on renewable resources for the production of energy. Given the predominance of petroleum- and carbon-based chemistry for the manufacture of organic chemical commodities, a similar preoccupation has recently generated numerous initiatives aimed at replacing these fossil sources with renewable counterparts. In particular, major efforts are being conducted in the field of polymer science and technology to prepare macromolecular materials based on renewable resources. The concept of the bio-refinery, viz. the rational exploitation of the vegetable biomass in terms of the separation of its components and their utilisation as such, or after suitable chemical modifications, is thus gaining momentum and considerable financial backing from both the public and private sectors. This collection of chapters, each one written by internationally recognised experts in the corresponding field, covers in a comprehensive fashion all the major aspects related to the synthesis, characterization and properties of macromolecular materials prepared using renewable resources as such, or after appropriate modifications. Thus, monomers such as terpenes and furans, oligomers like rosin and tannins, and polymers ranging from cellulose to proteins and including macromolecules synthesized by microbes, are discussed with the purpose of showing the extraordinary variety of materials that can be prepared from their intelligent exploitation. Particular emphasis has been placed on recent advances and imminent perspectives, given the incessantly growing interest that this area is experiencing in both the scientific and technological realms. - Discusses bio-refining with explicit application to materials - Replete with examples of applications of the concept of sustainable development - Presents an impressive variety of novel macromolecular materials

Polymers are huge macromolecules composed of repeating structural units. While polymer in popular usage suggests plastic, the term actually refers to a large class of natural and synthetic materials. Due to the extraordinary range of properties accessible, polymers have come to play an essential and ubiquitous role in everyday life - from plastics and elastomers on the one hand to natural biopolymers such as DNA and proteins on the other hand. The study of polymer science begins with understanding the methods in which these materials are synthesized. Polymer synthesis is a complex procedure and can take place in a variety of ways. This book brings together the "Who is who" of polymer science to give the readers an overview of the large field of polymer synthesis. It is a one-stop reference and a must-have for all Chemists, Polymer Chemists, Chemists in Industry, and Materials Scientists.

Interest in preparing new polymers peaked about 1966. Since that time, industrial and government support for the synthesis and study of new polymers has steadily declined. Gone are the good days when government funds supported a great push to attain ulti mate thermal stability for organic polymeric materials. Gone are the good days when many chemical companies, encouraged by the obvious potential for rewards, had great interest and provided support for preparing new polymers. We now often hear managers say "we have enough polymers" or "all we need to do is find additional and better ways to use existing polymers. " The latter often in cludes the statement, "we can get the new materials that are wanted from polymer alloys or blends. " Interest in preparing new monomers has also waned, even though it is well recognized that monomers with special functionality are greatly needed to fine-tune existing polymers for specific tasks. Shrinkage of interest in new monomer and polymer research has not come about solely as a result of the obvious maturity of the polymers industry. Since uses for polymers continue to grow and there is still room for good concepts to study, lack of market growth and fields of study have probably not significantly contribu ted to that shrinkage.

This book overviews methods for the synthesis of metal-containing monomers with various types of metal bonds to the organic moiety of the molecule, such as ionic, covalent, donor-acceptor, and others. Published data on homopolymerization, copolymerization, and graft polymerization of these monomers are generalized. Synthesis and Polymerization of Metal-Containing Monomers discusses features typical of the molecular and structural organization of the resulting metal-containing polymers, their properties and the associated major applications, such as catalytical and biological activity, electrophysical characteristics, and thermal resistance.

Highlighting solutions to more recently identified problems, this work focuses on the chemistry and technology involved in the functionalization of monomers, and the preparation and processing of polymers to serve specific material needs. It reflects the advances that have occurred in the field since the publication of the first edition.

This book is mainly dedicated to the processes of ozonolysis, destruction and stabilisation of polymers, reactions and structure formation of polymers in fractal spaces, hydrosilylation reactions, anti-adhesive coatings, synergism and antagonism in processes of polymers phototransformation and light stabilisation, selective oxidation, carbocations reactions and polymer analogous reactions.

This book tries to disseminate recent research results, and to stimulate new and extended activities in the field of polymer science and hybrid materials. Spectacular advances in polymer synthesis have led to a high level of control over molecular and supramolecular architectures. The book tries to get attention of the reader on some representative topics of polymer science and hybrid materials by seven contributions from prominent authors who are involved either in the synthesis and characterisation of linear and non-linear nonionic polymers, or in the design and characterisation of new hybrid materials.

The art and science of macromolecular architecture is based on synthesis, analysis, processing, and evaluation of physical properties of polymers. The growing specificity of available synthetic methods and the increasing refinement of analytical and physical analysis are gradually providing a deeper insight into structure-property relationships of polymers, upon which many applications can be based. This book deals with recent methods for polymer synthesis. Those that lead to specific structures have been selected especially. Background, mechanism scope and limitations, and illustrative procedures are given for each method. With this layout the editor hopes that the book will provide a practical guideline, for the synthetic polymer chemist in industry or at a university graduate school, on how to apply the methods in the design of new polymer structures. The editor is grateful to the authors not only for their contributions containing interesting new developments in polymer synthesis, but also for the way they have fitted their text into the general framework of the book. The elegant chemistry described in the following chapters will, it is hoped, inspire more organic chemists to apply their skills to polymer synthesis, where the beauty of organic chemistry in terms of structural control and reactivity may be even more apparent than in the low molecular field.