Polyesters have continuously found new and interesting applications, in many cases without any substituting alternative. The application opportunities of polyesters including high-performance materials are still not exhausted.

The Handbook of Thermoplastic Polyesters covers current knowledge on all aspects of polyester synthesis, structure, properties, and recycling. The most important technical polyesters are presented in detailed chapters, homogeneous polymers as well as copolymers, blends, and high-performance reinforced polyester materials are discussed.

From the Preface: “...All these opportunities for PET application are related to its peculiar properties, originating mostly from its structural characteristics. Of prime importance is its low crystallization rate, allowing the material to be easily obtained in the glassy state (photographic films, bottles). Secondly, PET is chemically very stable and practically insoluble, which makes it very attractive as a packaging material. At the same time, because of the presence of functional groups, PET easily undergoes chemical interactions (additional condensation, transreactions) in blends with other condensation polymers or functionalized polyolefins, provided the temperature is high enough (preferably in the melt). This helps one to overcome compatibilization problems, as well as to upgrade the molecular weight of PET via solid state postcondensation...”

Target Audience: Chemists, physicists, engineers, materials scientists, and other professionals working in research, development, and application of thermoplastic polyesters.

Table of Contents:

Homopolymers:

Polyesters: Synthesis and Chemical Aspects

Industrial-Scale Production of Polyesters, Especially Poly(ethylene terephthalate)

Crystal Structure, Morphology, and Orientation of Polyesters

Structure Formation in PET During the Induction Period of Crystallization

Structure and Dynamics of PET in the Partially Crystalline and Glassy States as Studied by Solid-State ¹³C and ²H NMR Spectroscopy

Structure Development and Mechanical Behavior During Uniaxial Drawing of PET

PET Fibers, Films, and Bottles

Poly(butylene terephthalate)

Oriented Crystallization of PET and PBT Estimated by Small-Angle Polarized Light Scattering

PEN: Structure and Properties

Microstructural Characterization of Poly(ethylene naphthalene 2,6-dicarboxylate) Based on the Amorphous and Crystalline Phase Properties

Poly(trimethylene terephthalate) — a Newly Commercialized Member of the Polyester Family

Copolymers:

Synthesis and Characteristics of Polyester-Based Thermoplastic Elastomers: Chemical Aspects

Main-Chain Thermotropic Polyesters

Flexible Copolyesters Involving PBT: Strain-Induced Structural Changes in Thermoplastic Elastomers

Fracture and Fatigue Behavior of Amorphous (Co)polyester as a Function of Molecular and Network Variables

Blends:

Chemical Interactions in Blends of Condensation Polymers Involving Polyesters

Reactive Modification/Compatibilization of Polyesters

Blends of Thermoplastic Polyesters

Blends Based on Poly(butylene terephthalate)

Strain-Induced Polymorphic Transition in Poly(butylene terephthalate), Its Copolymers and Blends

Aging and Environmental Stress Cracking of PET, Its Copolymers and Blends

Composites:

Nanostructured Polymer Composites from Polymer Blends: Morphology and Mechanical Properties

Textile Fabric-Reinforced Thermoplastic Polyester Composites

Fracture Behavior of Discontinuous Fiber-Reinforced Injection Molded Polyester Composites

Recycling:

Recycling of Polyesters

Chemical Recycling of PET: Methods and Products

Recycling Options for Post-Consumer PET and PET-Containing Wastes by Melt Blending

The Future of Thermoplastic Polymers:

Probable Future Trends in Various Classes of Thermoplastic Polyesters

Index