Chemistry & Technology of Polymers — Summer 2021

Explain the concepts: monomer functionality, average molecular weight, and molecular weight distribution.

Explain chain termination step and give various ways by which it can occur.

Give at least two industrial examples and write at least five salient features of the addition type polymers.

Write the Mark-Houwink equation and explain all the terms in it.

What is cryoscopy? How is it used in the determination of polymer molecular weight?

Derive the equations for ‘number average and weight average molecular weight’ of a polymer sample.

Equal number of molecules with molecular weight = 10,000 and 100,000 are mixed. Calculate number average and weight average molecular weight. What will be the number average and weight average molecular weights, if equal masses of molecules with molecular weight = 10,000 and 100,000 are mixed?

Compare and contrast bulk and solution techniques of polymerization.

Name the monomers used in the manufacture of Nylon, PVC, and HDPE.

What is copolymerization? State two examples of industrial copolymers.

Name the monomers used in the manufacture of Polyurethane, PVA, and LDPE.

Explain with examples the terms coordinate bond, hydrogen bond and the covalent bond in a chemical compound? Which one of them is the mostly found in polymers?

Explain the term Critical Micelle Concentration (CMC) in emulsion technique and state advantages of the technique over other techniques of polymerization.

Explain the terms initiators and inhibitors in reference to polymer synthesis.

Why a polymeric substance does not melt at a particular temperature?

Explain in detail free radical polymerization. OR1

What are crystallites and what is crystallinity?

What are different steps in the polymer dissolution process?

What is the primary requirement for a step growth polymerization reaction to occur? Explain how molecular weight builds up in a step growth polymerization reaction.

Name two processes for manufacturing ethylene and propylene on a large scale.

What is auto-acceleration?

Describe osmometric or ebulliometric experimental method of determination of molecular weight of a polymer sample.

What are ADU and VDU in crude distillation process?

What is interfacial polymerization technique? How is it different from other techniques?

Describe ultracentrifugation or end group analysis experimental method of determination of molecular weight of a polymer sample.