Chapter 23.3, Problem 17R

To determine

To explain: The reason for the variation in physical properties of polymers made from the same monomer.

Explanation of Solution

Introduction:

Polymers are made up of repeated units of high molecular mass compounds called monomers.

The physical properties of polymers depend heavily on their structure and fabrication.

Polymers made from the same monomers may differ in chain length, branching, and cross-linking, which affects their molecular mass, density, boiling points and degree of polymerization.

For example, high density polyethylene and low density polyethylene are both made up of ethylene monomers. However high density polyethylene has high density as it has linear chain structure, whereas, low density polyethylene has low density as it has branched-chain structure.

Conclusion:

Polymers made from the same monomers differ in structure and fabrication, hence have different physical properties.