Syllabus
Concepts and terminology. Principles of polymerization - chain versus step
growth process. Kinetics of chain polymerization process, estimation of
various rate constants. Determination of molecular weight of polymers and
their distribution. Characteristics and mechanisms of various chain
polymerizations - radical, cationic, anionic, Ziegler-Natta and ring opening
metathesis polymerizations. Living polymerizations - criteria for livingness,
newer methods for living polymerizations - GTP, ATRP and TEMPO-mediated
radical polymerizations. Copolymerization - random, alternating and block
copolymers and kinetic schemes for analysis of copolymerization.
Microstructural analysis of polymers - estimation of regio- and
stereo-regularity in polymers, sequence distribution in copolymers etc.,
and mechanisms for stereo-regulation. Molecular structural elucidation of
polymers by NMR.
References
Flory P.J., Principles of Polymer Chemistry.
Odian G., Principles of Polymerization.
Sawada M., Thermodynamics of Polymerization.