New process makes designer plastics

摘要

Producing 'designer polymers' for products such as hairspray anti-obesity drugs and inkjet printer inks requires expensive sub-zero temperatures and extremely pure solvents and other chemicals. Now, researchers based at the University of Warwick, UK, have devised and patented a new method for producing functional polymers and materials, allowing the production of complex polymers under precise control, unlike conventional polymerisation techniques currently employed in most laboratories. 'Living and controlled radical polymerisation' allows the production of new types of speciality functional polymers for a diverse range of new and existing application areas across many different market sectors. By finely controlling the length, shape and chemical composition of polymer chains, Professor David Haddleton and his team of researchers can produce polymers ideally suited for new high-value applications.