Chp. 14: Polymers are not just plastic

Question 1

Elastomer

Answer 1

a polymer that can be stretched by large amounts and return to its original length, like rubber.

Question 2

Thermoplastic

Answer 2

a polymer that becomes soft when heated and then can be shaped, then becomes rigid in that shape once it cools., like polyethylene.

Question 3

Thermosets

Answer 3

a polymer that becomes more rigid when heated.

Question 4

Crosslinking

Answer 4

using atoms such as oxygen and sulfur which insert bridges between chains and thus inhibit their slider over each other

Question 5

Vulcanization

Answer 5

adding sulfur to rubber to make it stronger

Question 6

ebonite

Answer 6

when so much sulfur is added to rubber, it becomes a rigid black solid, like clarinets.

Question 7

Chain Stiffening

Answer 7

by replacing atoms with large side groups, to inhibit bonds from rotating and also to roughen the chains to make it more difficult for them to move past each other

Question 8

Steric Hindrance

Answer 8

Large groups of atoms block an atom in a polymer from rotating, making it stiffer.

Question 9

Chain crystallization

Answer 9

packs the chains very close together over long distances thus increasing the bond strength between them and therefore strengthening them

Question 10

mers

Answer 10

the individual units of a poly”mer”