Polymethyl methacrylate Perspex

Various polymeric materials were tested statically with both gaseous and liquefied mixtures of fluorine and oxygen containing from 50 to 100% of the former. The materials which burned or reacted violently were phenol-formaldehyde resins (Bakelite) polyacrylonitrile-butadiene (Buna N) polyamides (Nylon) polychloroprene (Neoprene) polyethylene polytriflu-oropropylmethylsiloxane (LS63) polyvinyl chloride-vinyl acetate (Tygan) polyvinylidene fluoride-hexafluoropropylene (Viton) polyurethane foam. Under dynamic conditions of flow and pressure, the more resistant materials which binned were chlorinated polyethylenes, polymethyl methacrylate (Perspex) polytetraflu-oroethylene (Teflon). 

Reppe carried out researches in Germany and his work enabled large scale production of vinylpolymers from acetylene. In late thirties polystyrene and polymethacrylate were produced on large scale in Germany. ICI in England manufactured polymethyl methacrylate (Perspex) in 1936. 

There are many other polymers that, like polypropylene, are atactic (i.e. unable to crystallize) if synthesized under normal conditions. This includes, for instance, polystyrene, polymethyl methacrylate (perspex), and polyvinyl chloride (PVC), to mention but a few from everyday life. 

The 1930s marked the start of the poly era. It had been known since the nineteenth century that a number of organic compounds could yield tarry insoluble materials under certain conditions, but it was not until the 1930s that the chemical nature of these compounds was understood. It was Hermann Staudinger (1881-1965) who established that these materials, as well as natural rubber, consisted of very long-chain molecules. Commercial production of polyvinyl chloride (PVC) commenced in the 1930s with the development of suitable plasticisers, and other thermosoftening addition polymers which were first produced at this time include polystyrene, polyethylene (Polythene), polymethyl methacrylate (Perspex) and polychloroprene (Neoprene), which is similar to natural rubber except that the methyl side chain has been replaced by chlorine. 

Finally, the diversity of the bulk properties of proteins is unequaled in any other known polymer class. Proteins form materials as diverse as the hard substance of nails and hair, the transparent substance of the lens, the elastic substance of collagen, and so on. Some of tliese properties are equaled by polymers in other classes keratin by the carbohydrate polymer chitin (A-acyl-o-glucosamine), the transparency of the lens proteins by the polymer Perspex (polymethyl methacrylate), the toughness and elasticity of collagen by the polyamide nylon. But no single polymer class has demonstrated such a variety of diverse bulk properties. The compaction of so many diverse bulk properties into one polymer class, polypeptides composed of the twenty proteinaceous amino acids, obviously contributes greatly to their biological fitness. 

Acrylics These are a versatile family of polymers, most commonly represented by polymethyl methacrylate (PMMA), or commercial names. Perspex or Plexiglass. It was developed in 1931. Its specific mass = 1.18. The chemical structure is as follows ... 

Polymethyl methacrylate (PMMA/Perspex/Plexiglass) is colorless, transparent, but vulnerable to solvents and fragile. It is commonly used in connectors, cells, and LOV platforms. 

PMMA Polymethyl methacrylate Acrylic ICI BASF Rohm Haas Du Pont Rochm Diakon/Perspex (sheet) Lucryl Implex Lucitc Plexiglas... 

Polymethyl methacrylate (PMMA), also called Plexiglas, Lucite, or Perspex, is a colorless clear transparent plastic with excellent outdoor stability if UV absorbers are added to the polymer— otherwise, it yellows on exposure to sunlight. Like styrene, it also unzips on heating to reform the monomer. It has poor scratch resistance but was the plastic of choice for early contact lenses. 

PMMA (Acrylic, also known as Perspex) - is often used for its optical properties. Polymethyl methacrylate absorbs very little incident light, infact the light transmission through a parallel sheet free from faults is about 92%. The mar resistance of acrylic polymers is poor and is often upgraded through the use of a clear hardcoat... 

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