i. The growth of synthetic polymers exceeds metals in annual usage volumetrically. Polymers can be molded into intricate shapes with no further processing required and possess properties suitable for many engineering applications like low density, good strength-to-weight ratios, high corrosion resistance, and low conductivity.
ii. Organic polymers are widely used in industries like electronics, medical, and chromatography. They are used as packaging materials, insulators, stationary phases, and in gas sensing and drug delivery applications.
iii. Polymer processing techniques and common resins/uses are compared in Tables 1 and 2.
Download as PPT, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
0 ratings0% found this document useful (0 votes)
36 views
Module 4
i. The growth of synthetic polymers exceeds metals in annual usage volumetrically. Polymers can be molded into intricate shapes with no further processing required and possess properties suitable for many engineering applications like low density, good strength-to-weight ratios, high corrosion resistance, and low conductivity.
ii. Organic polymers are widely used in industries like electronics, medical, and chromatography. They are used as packaging materials, insulators, stationary phases, and in gas sensing and drug delivery applications.
iii. Polymer processing techniques and common resins/uses are compared in Tables 1 and 2.
Download as PPT, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
You are on page 1/ 8
CHE417
Growth in applications of synthetic
polymers • The growth in applications of synthetic polymers is truly impressive. On a volumetric basis, current annual usage of polymers exceeds that of metals. There are several reasons for the commercial and technological importance of polymers: • i. Plastics can be formed by molding into intricate part geometries, usually with no further processing required. They are very compatible with net shape processing. • Plastics possess an attractive list of properties for many engineering applications where strength is not a factor: (1) low density relative to metals and ceramics; (2) good strengthto-weight ratios for certain (but not all) polymers; (3) high corrosion resistance; and (4) low electrical and thermal conductivity. • iii. On a volumetric basis, polymers are cost-competitive with metals • iv. On a volumetric basis, polymers generally require less energy to produce than metals. • v. This is generally true because the temperatures for working these materials are much lower than for metals. • vi. Certain plastics are translucent and/or transparent, which makes them competitive with glass in some applications. • vii. Polymers are widely used in composite materials Applications of organic Polymers • Organic polymers are base materials for many important industries. They are usually compounded with other ingredients to enable the desired balance of properties to be achieved for any particular application. Indeed, the use of such ingredients, or additives, has played an essential role in the commercial development of many polymers. • Organic polymers are widely used in the electronics industry as packaging materials, as insulants, dielectrics, thermal transfer media, and to add protection to fine joints and delicate components against vibration, mechanical and thermal shock, and atmospheric pollutants. • Organic polymer packing materials are chemically stable and are suitable for use in an automated instrument. • Organic polymers are important materials in gas sensing systems. • Organic polymers have a comparatively high gas permeability. The gas transport properties are dependent on the degree of crystallinity. • Organic polymer with the integration of nano- and microparticles have found multiple applications in the medical domain ranging from targeted drug delivery to detection of tumors in the body. • Organic polymers are used in various forms for obtaining stationary phases in High-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC). The polymers can be used as small particles, similar to those obtained from hydrated silica, or can be made in monoliths. • Also, some polymers can be used as stationary phase as synthesized, or can be used as a solid support that is further derivatized for obtaining the active stationary phase. Table 1: Comparison of polymer processing techniques for thermoplastics and thermosets. Table 2: Major Plastic Resins and Their Uses