Category Chemistry

How are monomers combined?

            We have been talking about polymers a lot. But how are they synthesized? A polymer is made by combining monomers to form a long chain and for this; monomers react and combine in a process called polymerization.

            A monomer has the capacity to form chemical bonds with at least two other monomer molecules. Nucleic acid is a natural polymer which is formed when nucleotide monomers bond. How does a PVC pipe take shape? Vinyl chloride is the monomer that reacts in a certain fashion to form polyvinyl chloride (PVC).

            Polymers are formed either by repeated addition or condensation of monomers. Accordingly, polymerization is generally of two types which we will talk about later in detail.

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What are the characteristics of polymers?

          Polymers can be processed in various ways. The characteristics of polymers depend on the chemical bonding between the monomers and the process used to make them. However, polymers have some common attributes.

         Generally, all polymers have long chains consisting of hundreds of monomers. Most polymers show a high resistance to chemicals. Look at the cleaning materials used in your house. When it comes in contact with your skin or eyes, it can cause rashes or itching. But they are safely packed in plastic bottles and the packaging remains unaffected by its contents.

          They resist heat and that’s why, most of the handles of cook-wares are made of plastics. They are good electrical insulators as well. Remember Bakelite, which is used to insulate electric wires. All electric appliances, cords and wirings are covered with polymeric materials.

          Polymers are light in weight, but have significant strength and their inherent properties can be enhanced by using a range of additives. They do not generally melt; because of their structure, they change from crystalline to a semi-crystalline form when heated.

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How are synthetic polymers made?

          Polymers are made by bonding monomers. The process of formation of a polymer is known as polymerization and each polymer has a different combination of sub units.

         Many of the polymers are made by breaking up hydrocarbons. Hydrocarbons are heated up to break the large molecules into smaller ones. This is done in the presence of a catalyst, a material that speeds up the chemical reaction.

         To understand more about the process, let’s look at how plastic is made. To make plastic, natural gases or crude oil are broken down into monomers such as ethylene or butane. These monomers are then combined to form polymers in a chemical reaction. The properties of polymers depend on how the monomers are being bonded.

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Can we chemically modify natural polymers?

          Natural polymers can be modified by chemical treatment.

          The product obtained after the modification is known as a semi-synthetic polymer. A new polymer is synthesized out of a naturally occurring one and hence the name!

          Vulcanized rubber is a semi-synthetic polymer. Rubber in its natural form is not thermally stable. It becomes very hard when it is cold and melts down in heat. But, when treated with sulphur, rubber achieves thermal stability and becomes flexible and can be used to make a range of useful products. This chemical treatment of rubber is known as vulcanization.

           Similarly, many other natural polymers can be modified into semi-synthetic polymers with desirable properties.

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How do we describe the elements livermorium, tennessine and oganesson?

 

                        Livermorium, the element number 116, is named after the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory in California. The element was first synthesized by the scientists of JINR, Dubna, in 2000. The name was officially given by the International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry on May 23rd, 2012. An extremely radioactive element, Livermorium can be produced only artificially; and therefore, little is known about it. The element is represented as Lv.

 

 

                     Tennessine is a radioactive element. It is artificially produced in a lab. Since the element is not found naturally in the universe, nothing much is known about it. The element is expected to be a solid, but its classification is unknown. In November 2016, the International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry (IUPAC) approved the name tennessine for element 117, after the American state, Tennessee. The element is represented as Ts.

 

 

 

 

                       Oganesson is a radioactive, artificially produced element about which little is known. It is expected to be a gas. The atomic number of oganesson is 118, and the symbol is Og.

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What qualities make nihonium, flerovium and moscovium special?

 

                  Nihonium is an extremely radioactive synthetic element. It is so radioactive that one of its isotopes is reduced to half its initial quantity within 10 seconds! Very little is known about nihonium. It is classified as a metal, and is expected to be solid at room temperature. The first undisputed claim of its discovery was made in 2004 by scientists from Japan. It was in November 2016, that the International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry (IUPAC) approved the name nihonium for element 113. It is represented as Nh.

 

 

 

 

                  Flerovium is named after Georgy Flyorov, founder of the Joint Institute of Nuclear Research in Russia, where the element was discovered. Flerovium is a radioactive element about which little is known. There is hardly any use for flerovium, outside experimental interests. The atomic number of the element is 114, and it is represented as Fl.

 

 

 

 

 

              A synthetic element, moscovium was first synthesized in 2003. The element is named after Moscow Oblast, Russia, where the element was first synthesized. Moscovium has the atomic number 115, and is represented as Mc.

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