Polymer Science By V. R. Gowariker, N. V. Viswanathan and J. Sreedhar, John Wiley B Sons, Inc., 505 pp., 1986, $39.95 Polymer Science contains 15 chapters; a bibliography and an appendix consisting of a list of universities/institutions offering courses on polymer science and technology. The chapters include the traditional sections on chemistry of polymerization, molecular weight and size, kinetics of polymerization, copolymerization, a list of individual polymers, polymer reactions and polymer degradation. The book also contains sections on the structure of macromolecules, the glass transition tem- perature, crystallinity, polymer solutions and processing. The book jacket claims that these “1 5 chapters are aimed to raise the reader to a level where he/she can easily assimilate other specialized and exhaustive treatises on the subject.” After reading the text this reviewer has come to the conclusion that the authors have not reached their goal. This book is too superficial particularly with the physico-chemical and physics aspects of polymer science. There is no mention of rubber elasticity, rheology, chain stiffness and liquid crystals, crystalline unit cells, crystallization rates, etc. The section on physical methods does not include melting behavior. No section deals with the important issue of structure/property relations in polymer materials. A better title for this book would be An Introduction to Polymer Chemistry. A number of erroneous statments are made. Examples are: the useful range of degrees of polymerizations (claimed to be only 200-300), remarks on polymer dissolution, and polymer crystallinity. Some of the values of melting points and crystallinities are highly misleading. Highdensity polyethylene, for example, is thought to have typical values of 1441 5OoC and 90%for the melting point and crystallinity, respectively. The book certainly will not serve, contrary to the authors’ hope, as a “Handbook on important polymer-related properties.” The language used in the book is unusual. The printing is of moderate quality and the reproduction of photographs is poor. Many of the existing textbooks listed in the bibliography cover the topic in a better way. Finally, the list in the appendix of universities and institutes with polymer-related programs fails to mention important centers such as, Leeds and Bristol in Great Brittain, Freiburg and Mainz in the Federal Republic of Germany, for France and the USSR, only one entry each, and Dutch institutes are ignored. Paul Smith University of California Materials Program and Department of Chemical & Nuclear Engineering Santa Barbara, California 93106 AICbE Journal December 1987 Vol. 33, No. 12
polymer science book by gowariker pdf
The work will be suitable for graduate students and above studying the subfield of materials science concerned with polymers. It may also be applicable to chemists, chemical engineers, material scientists, polymer scientists, environmental scientists and biologists in academia and government or corporate research labs 2ff7e9595c
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