PC Painter and MM Coleman
Fundamentals of Polymer Science
(2nd Edition, CRC Press)

Chapter 2

Concepts that you must know (all polymer syntheses methods are defined in this chapter):
  1. Step-Growth Polymerization (or Poly-Condensation): general method, how/when polymer is formed, what type/size of molecules exist in the reactor (in the beggining, middle, and end of reaction). Examples: dicarboxyls + dialcohols, dicarboxyls + diamines, diisocynade + dialcohols. Examples: polyesters, polyamides (nylon 6; nylon 6,6), polyurethanes. Is "stoichiometry" important, why?
  2. Chain Polymerization (or Addition Polymerization): general method, how/when polymer is formed, what type/size of molecules exist in the reactor (in the beggining, middle, and end of reaction). Examples: free radical, anionic, cationic, and coordination reactions. The three stages: initiation, propagation, termination.
  3. What is: free radical, batch/continuous process, living polymerization
  4. Principles (compare & contrast): suspension vs. emulsion polymerization
Exercises:
  1. None at this stage, all the above will be used and quantified in detail in the following three chapters.