Chapter 3 Polymeric Materials: Composition, Uses and Applications

Publisher Summary Polymers play an integral role in modern society. Engineering polymers are often used as a replacement for wood and metals. Examples include polyamides, often called nylons, polyesters (saturated and unsaturated), aromatic polycarbonates, polyoxymethylenes, polyacrylates, polyphenylene oxide, and styrene copolymers—styrene/ acrylonitrile and acrylonitrile/butadiene/styrene. Advanced materials can be used in extreme conditions, for example, high temperatures and severe chemical environments, for example, polytetrafluoroethylene with concentrated H 2 SO 4 . They are often used as a critical component in a work piece and are frequently reinforced with glass, carbon, or aramid fibers. Organic polymers are sometimes referred to as plastics (although, this should be confined to thermoplastic polymers), macromolecules, or resins though the latter is often used to describe raw polymeric material awaiting fabrication. Many polymers are used in various forms that are not associated with normal plastic materials.