Polymer Chemistry

Polymers - large molecules ranging from plastics and rubber to protein and DNA - are ubiquitous and important for everyday life and advanced technologies for our society. It is difficult to envision modern society without a basic understanding of the fundamental chemistry and concepts related to these macromolecules. Developments in polymer chemistry have allowed the synthesis of polymers with controlled molecular weights, strength, architectures, and rich functionalities. Therefore, CHEM 3000 is an introductory course offers the history of polymers, the basic principles of synthesis, characterization of polymers, and select recent advances in polymer technology. Polymer chemists are uniquely positioned to understand the relationship between structure and property from the molecular scale to macroscopic scale. Prerequisites: Chem 26100 and Chem 26300.