A polymer is a large molecule (macromolecule) composed of repeating structural units typically connected by covalent chemical bonds. While polymer in popular usage suggests plastic, the term actually refers to a large class of natural and synthetic materials with a variety of properties and purposes.

Well-known examples of polymers include plastics and proteins. A simple example is polypropylene, whose repeating unit structure is shown at the right. However, polymers are not just limited to having predominantly carbon backbones, elements such a silicon form familiar materials such as silicones, examples being silly putty and waterproof plumbing sealant. The backbone of DNA is in fact based on a phosphodiester bond.

Natural polymer materials such as shellac and amber have been in use for centuries. Biopolymers such as proteins and nucleic acids play crucial roles in biological processes. A variety of other natural polymers exist, such as cellulose, which is the main constituent of wood and paper.

The list of synthetic polymers includes Bakelite, neoprene, nylon, PVC, polystyrene, polyacrylonitrile, PVB, silicone, and many more.

Polymers are studied in the fields of polymer chemistry, polymer physics, and polymer science.

Etymology

The word polymer is derived from the Greek words πολυ (poly), meaning "many"; and μέρος (meros), meaning "part".

Historical development

Starting in 1811, Henri Braconnot did pioneering work in derivative cellulose compounds, perhaps the earliest important work in polymer science. The term polymer was coined in 1833 by Jöns Jakob Berzelius. The development of vulcanization later in the nineteenth century improved the durability of the natural polymer rubber, signifying the first popularized semi-synthetic polymer. In 1907, Leo Baekeland created the first completely synthetic polymer, Bakelite, by reacting phenol and formaldehyde at precisely controlled temperature and pressure. Bakelite was then publicly introduced in 1909.

Despite significant advances in synthesis and characterization of polymers, a correct understanding of polymer molecular structure did not emerge until the 1920s. Before that, scientists believed that polymers were clusters of small molecules (called colloids), without definite molecular weights, held together by an unknown force, a concept known as association theory. In 1922, Hermann Staudinger proposed that polymers consisted of long chains of atoms held together by covalent bonds, an idea which did not gain wide acceptance for over a decade and for which Staudinger was ultimately awarded the Nobel Prize. Work by Wallace Carothers in the 1920s also demonstrated that polymers could be synthesized rationally from their constituent monomers. An important contribution to synthetic polymer science was made by the Italian chemist Giulio Natta and the German chemist Karl Ziegler, who won the Nobel Prize in Chemistry in 1963 for the development of the Ziegler-Natta catalyst. In the intervening century, synthetic polymer materials such as nylon, polyethylene, Teflon, and silicone have formed the basis for a burgeoning polymer industry. These years have also shown significant developments in rational polymer synthesis. Most commercially important polymers today are entirely synthetic and produced in high volume on appropriately scaled organic synthetic techniques.