THE POLYMER REVOLUTION

The early years, when the nature of polymers was in vigorous dispute and the reality of long-chain molecules finally came to be accepted, are treated in Chapter 2, Section 2.1.3. For the convenience of the reader 1 set out the sequence of early events here in summary form. 

After 1930, when the true nature of polymers was at last generally, recognised, the study of polymers expanded from being the province of organic specialists physical chemists like Paul Flory and physicists like Charles Frank became involved. In this short chapter, I shall be especially concerned to map this broadening range of research on polymers. 

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Three of the remaining four subsidiaries of European companies listed in Table 1.1 were Rhine Valle first movers. Henkel, based in Diisseldorf, and Sol-vay, headquartered in Brussels, fifty miles from the Rhine, became the first movers during the 1880s in their respective industries. Both maintained their competitive capabilities for more than a hundred years. A third Rhine Valley pioneer was the forerunner of Akzo, Vereinigt Glanzstaff-Fabriken, a first mover in rayon and related artificial fabrics. Owing partly to World War II, the company did not participate in the polymer revolution in fibers and so... 

Olin Corporation s product portfolio also went full circle, but it differed from Grace in that Olin transitioned out of chemicals only to later reenter. Olin was one of the very few explosive companies that did not join Du Pont in 1903-1904 to form the B. 1. du Pont de Nemours Powder Company (see Chapter 3). Unlike Du Pont, it remained a producer of explosives and ammunition, buying in the 1930s Winchester Firearms Company (at much the same time that Du Pont obtained Remington Arms). Olin did not participate in the polymer revolution. But in 1947 Du Pont, to satisfy the government s antitrust division, granted Olin the licenses and technologies to produce cellophane. ... 

The intrinsic viscosity of poly(7-benzyl-L-glutamate) (Mq = 219) shows such a strong molecular weight dependence in dimethyl formamide that the polymer was suspected to exist as a helix which approximates a prolate ellipsoid of revolution in its hydrodynamic behaviorf ... 

Polymers are major materials in the nanotechnology revolution, including as conductive (photo and electronic) materials. Delocalization of electrons throughout a polymer chain or matrix is important for electronic conductance. This is often accomplished through doping, which encourages flow of electrons. 

The analysis by gel permeation chromatography, which provides a convenient way of determining parameters a and K of Eq, 25 has indicated35 tentatively an a value of 1.7 for polymers Pt-D1 and Pt-D2. This suggests a rod-like structure which has been supported by the theoretical treatment of the hydrodynamic property of the polymer based on a stretched ellipsoid of a revolution model (Simha s equation)47. The molecular dimension of Pt-D1 polymer, e.g. the minor axis (18 A) obtained from the calculation is in good agreement with that determined by the X-ray structural analysis... 

Sediment volume and redispersion For sediment volume experiments a 50% w/v suspension was prepared using a 2% w/w of the polymer. 5g of the resulting suspension was added to 5 ml solutions of PEO to cover a wide concentration and the resulting suspension placed in stoppered cylinders and kept in constant temperature cabinets (25 1 C). The sediment height was followed with time for several weeks until equilibrium was reached. At this point the tubes were mechanically Inverted end-over-end and the number of revolutions required for redispersion was noted. 

As expected, within only a few decades an important revolution in the polymer chemistry through CD-mediated reactions might change the current production processes in chemical industry. Undoubtedly, the unique host properties of CDs should be taken into account when novel polymerization processes are created. 

Chapter 6 deals with the American competitors in petrochemicals. Nearly all were major petroleum companies that had been established before World War 1. They played an important role in commercializing products originating in the polymer/petrochemical revolution. Several attempted unsuccessfully to compete with the major chemical companies in polymer-based products. By the 1980s, however, several netted 25-30 percent of their profits by producing basic feedstocks and polymers. 

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