Macromolecular packing crystalline polymers

The recommendations embodied in this document are concerned with the terminology relating to the structure of crystalline polymers and the process of macromolecular crystallization. The document is limited to systems exhibiting crystallinity in the classical sense of three-dimensionally periodic regularity. The recommendations deal primarily with crystal structures that are comprised of essentially rectilinear, parallel-packed polymer chains, and secondarily, with those composed of so-called globular macromolecules. Since the latter are biological in nature, they are not covered in detail here. In general, macromolecular systems with mesophases are also omitted, but crystalline polymers with conformational disorder are included. 

Within the class of polymer crystals having, ideally, long-range positional order for all the atoms, different crystalline forms (polymorphs) may arise as a result of having different almost isoenergetic macromolecular conformations (of the main chain, in most known cases) or as a result of different, almost isoenergetic modes of packing of macromolecules with identical conformations [1-3]. 

The special restriction caused by tying low molecular mass liquid crystalline substances to a polymer chain was also illustrated with amphiphilic liquid crystals. A hexagonally close-packed structure of rod-like micelle cylinders of sodium 10-undecenoate with about 50% water lost during polyma-ization at 60 °C its structure and became isotropic. On cooling, a lamellar liquid crystalline structure, more suitable to accommodate the macromolecular backbone was found. Bas l on the discussions of Sect. 5.3.4 it is likely that with longer side-chain amphiphiles condis crystals could be grown in analogy to the soaps described in Sect. 5.2.3... 

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