This revised and expanded second edition focuses on performance as determined by processing conditions, polymer type, and design considerations. It covers polymer structure, thermal properties, melt rheology, mixing, solidification effects, mechanical behavior, failure analysis, and material properties overviews. The most important change made to this edition is the inclusion of additional real-world examples and the presentation of a variety of problems at the end of each chapter. There is also a new chapter introducing polymers from an historical perspective.

Materials Science of Polymers, 2nd Ed. is divided into three main sections — basic principles, the influence of processing on properties, and engineering design properties. The first section provides historical background and discusses basic material properties, molecular structure, and thermal properties. The second section introduces the reader to the importance of processing conditions on material attributes. The final section covers the different properties that need to be considered when designing a polymer component, and analyzing its performance.

From the Preface: "#147;...A new chapter containing the history of polymers replaced a few pages in the first edition...[W]e found that introducing polymers from a historical perspective not only made the topic less dry, but it also gave us a chance to show the role polymers have played, for better and for worse, while shaping today's industrial world. The mixing chapter in the first edition was replaced with a comprehensive polymer processing chapter. The first edition was praised because of the vast number of graphs and data that can be used as a reference. We have further strengthened this attribute by adding a table in the appendix that contains material property graphs for several polymers...”

Target Audience: Engineers, technicians, and engineering students interested in how the materials science and processing of polymers affect the design process.

Table of Contents:

Basic Principles:

Introduction to Polymers

Historical Background

Structure of Polymers

Thermal Properties of Polymers

Rheology of Polymer Melts

Influence of Processing on Properties:

Introduction to Processing

Anisotropy Development During Processing

Solidification of Polymers

Engineering Design Properties:

Mechanical Behavior of Polymers

Failure and Damage of Polymers

Electrical Properties of Polymers

Optical Properties of Polymers

Permeability Properties of Polymers

Acoustic Properties of Polymers

Appendix

Index