A plastic is a polymer, which is something made of many units similar to a chain. Each link in the chain is the “mer” or basic unit that is usually made out of carbon, oxygen, hydrogen, and/or silicon. Many links are hooked or “polymerized” together to make the chain.
Many common classes of polymers are composed of hydrocarbons, which contain the elements hydrogen and carbon. Seven other elements also found in polymers include: oxygen, chlorine, fluorine, nitrogen, silicon, phosphorous, and sulfur.
One of the most famous silicon-based polymers is Silly Putty. There are quite a few general attributes of polymers. They are very resistant to chemicals, can be thermal and electrical insulators, are light in mass with varying degrees of strength. and they can be processed in various ways to produce thin fibers or even very intricate parts.
9.9% of our trash are plastics. WTE stands for waste-to-energy. Two benefits of WTE include: we can use plastics that can’t be recycled, and when we incinerate polymers it produces heat.
Below is a list of polymers, when they were developed and who developed them (last name).
Rayon – Developed in 1891 by Bernigaut
Silly Putty - Developed in 1949 by Wright
Cellophane - Discovered in 1900 by Brandenberger
Polyethylene – Developed in 1936 by Fawcett & Gibson
Nylon - Developed in 1939 by Carothers
Bakelite - Developed in 1907 by Baekeland
Velcro - Developed in 1957 by Maestral
Saran - Discovered in 1933 by Wiley
PVC (Vinyl) – Developed by Simon
Parkesine - Discovered in 1862 by Parker
Teflon – Discovered in 1938 by Plunkett
Celluoid - Developed in 1869 by Hyatt
The following polymers are listed from the oldest discoveries to the most recent.
1 Parkesine
2 Celluoid
3 Rayon
4 Cellophane
4 Bakellite
5 Saran
6 Polyethylene
8 Teflon
9 Nylon
10 Silly Putty
11 Velcro
Plastics have shaped our modern world. The word plastic was derived from the Greek word plasticos, which means to mold, because plastics are mold-able and soft. Plastics are synthetic polymers.
The definition of a monomer is: the building blocks for making polymers. A polymer is defined as: many monomers that are joined together in chains. Organic material is defined as: carbon compounds.
When you make plastic, you start with crude oil, which contains hundreds of different different hydrocarbons. An oil refinery separates the materials in the oil to break down large hydrocarbons into smaller ones. Then a petrochemical plant receives the refined oil and create polymers out of the small monomers through chemical reactions. After that the plastic factories buy the end product of the petrochemical plant, the polymers in the form of resins. They change them to what they want them to be, and then create the final form for the plastic.
Plastics are polymers, but polymers don’t have to be plastics. It is not true that cellulose and DNA are plastics. They are polymers, but are not plastics. Some natural polymers are silk, wool, cotton, and leather.
Plastics are categorized into two groups, thermoplastics and thermosets.
Thermoplastics Thermosets
On a virtual polymer creator we used ethylene to make the polymer. There were 2 carbon and 4 hydrogen atoms. The initiator started the process.
I played some matching games, first the breakfast matching and then matching polymers. Below are my
Breakfast Game– 1st Try = 9588 2nd Try = 9632 3rd Try = 9608
Polymer Game - – 1st Try = 9615 2nd Try = 9621 3rd Try = 9379
Many common classes of polymers are composed of hydrocarbons, which contain the elements hydrogen and carbon. Seven other elements also found in polymers include: oxygen, chlorine, fluorine, nitrogen, silicon, phosphorous, and sulfur.
One of the most famous silicon-based polymers is Silly Putty. There are quite a few general attributes of polymers. They are very resistant to chemicals, can be thermal and electrical insulators, are light in mass with varying degrees of strength. and they can be processed in various ways to produce thin fibers or even very intricate parts.
9.9% of our trash are plastics. WTE stands for waste-to-energy. Two benefits of WTE include: we can use plastics that can’t be recycled, and when we incinerate polymers it produces heat.
Below is a list of polymers, when they were developed and who developed them (last name).
Rayon – Developed in 1891 by Bernigaut
Silly Putty - Developed in 1949 by Wright
Cellophane - Discovered in 1900 by Brandenberger
Polyethylene – Developed in 1936 by Fawcett & Gibson
Nylon - Developed in 1939 by Carothers
Bakelite - Developed in 1907 by Baekeland
Velcro - Developed in 1957 by Maestral
Saran - Discovered in 1933 by Wiley
PVC (Vinyl) – Developed by Simon
Parkesine - Discovered in 1862 by Parker
Teflon – Discovered in 1938 by Plunkett
Celluoid - Developed in 1869 by Hyatt
The following polymers are listed from the oldest discoveries to the most recent.
1 Parkesine
2 Celluoid
3 Rayon
4 Cellophane
4 Bakellite
5 Saran
6 Polyethylene
8 Teflon
9 Nylon
10 Silly Putty
11 Velcro
Plastics have shaped our modern world. The word plastic was derived from the Greek word plasticos, which means to mold, because plastics are mold-able and soft. Plastics are synthetic polymers.
The definition of a monomer is: the building blocks for making polymers. A polymer is defined as: many monomers that are joined together in chains. Organic material is defined as: carbon compounds.
When you make plastic, you start with crude oil, which contains hundreds of different different hydrocarbons. An oil refinery separates the materials in the oil to break down large hydrocarbons into smaller ones. Then a petrochemical plant receives the refined oil and create polymers out of the small monomers through chemical reactions. After that the plastic factories buy the end product of the petrochemical plant, the polymers in the form of resins. They change them to what they want them to be, and then create the final form for the plastic.
Plastics are polymers, but polymers don’t have to be plastics. It is not true that cellulose and DNA are plastics. They are polymers, but are not plastics. Some natural polymers are silk, wool, cotton, and leather.
Plastics are categorized into two groups, thermoplastics and thermosets.
Thermoplastics Thermosets
| Can it be shaped? | yes | no |
| Analogy | When ice is heated, it melts. When thermoplastics are heated, they melt. | Just like a raw egg can become a boiled egg, a scrambled egg, etc; a thermoset can become many different things. |
| Strong or weak bonds | weak, connected, linear, bonds | strong, cross-linked bonds |
| Uses | There are many different uses including food wrap, food containers, lighting panels, and garden hoses. | Thermosets are used for things that can be heated up such as kitchen spatulas, and other kitchen tools. They are also in glues and circuitboards. |
| Recyling: Easy or Hard? | Easy because they can be molded into different shapes. | Hard because they have to be crushed to create powder which can be used for other thermosets. |
On a virtual polymer creator we used ethylene to make the polymer. There were 2 carbon and 4 hydrogen atoms. The initiator started the process.
I played some matching games, first the breakfast matching and then matching polymers. Below are my
Breakfast Game– 1st Try = 9588 2nd Try = 9632 3rd Try = 9608
Polymer Game - – 1st Try = 9615 2nd Try = 9621 3rd Try = 9379
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