Polymers (Edexcel GCSE Chemistry): Revision Note

Polymers

• Polymers are very large molecules which are built up by linking together 50 or more smaller molecules called monomers

• Each repeat unit is connected to the adjacent units via covalent bonds

• Some polymers called homopolymers contain just one type of monomer unit

  • Examples of these include poly(ethene) and poly(chloroethene), commonly known as PVC

• Others contain two or more different types of monomer units which are called copolymers which have interesting and useful properties

  • Examples of these include ABS, a copolymer used in producing water pipes and musical instruments

• Poly(ethene) is a very common type of polymer which is formed from the addition of many ethene monomers together

• The intermolecular forces between the molecules in a polymer tend to be strong hence many of these substances are solid at room temperature

Polymerisation of ethene monomers produces poly(ethene). The small n signifies that there is a large number of repeat units