Polymer reaction engineering disciplines

It is roughly in the last 30-40 years that PRE has become a scientific discipline of its own, thanks to forerunners such as Bdhm, Hamielec [4], Ray, Reichert, and Sinn [5]. It would take a single book to revisit the history and development of PRE. Instead, the interested reader is referred to a few selective yet representative reviews or editorial papers [2-13]. The importance of this area can also be sensed and monitored by following the contents of the dedicated journals to PRE [Polymer Reaction Engineering [14], from 1992 to 2003, the Macromolecular Reaction Engineering regular section in Macromolecular Materials Engineering... 

This tome represents the first published handbook on polymer reaction engineering and should be well received in academia and industry. Polymer reaction engineering became recognized as a separate engineering discipline in the 1970 s. It is well past due that such a handbook be published. The broad scope and depth of coverage should make it an important reference for years to come. 

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