A
SYMPOSIUM
Polymer Chemlsh.y
Although this country is noted for its large number of colleges and universities, and the variety of their educational philosophies, the teaching of chemistry has evolved into a somewhat traditional pattern; most departments have considered their major responsibility to be teaching their students the principles of chemical science, as a foundation for later careers. The application of chemistry to industrial uses is left, by tacit agreement, to be learned "on the job." This is undoubtedly a reasonable view. The demands of other aspects of higher education leave only a limited time to the study of chemistry, as a major subject, at the bachelor's degree level. Much the same consideration prevails even a t the graduate level. Here again, the formal course work must concern itself mostly with advanced study of the general theoretical aspects of chemistry, leaving much less time for the study of specific areas. Of course, the graduate student does select a major field (physical, organic, etc.) and specializes by means of his research work, which then orients him toward an area of his field of chemistry. The orientation and guidance of future chemists is, therefore, a problem of the undergraduate curriculum, no matter whether the student is headed for graduate school or industry. Such guidance must surely take into account the scientific and technological advances in the "outside world." Admittedly, because of the time limitations described above, it is not feasible to design whole new undergraduate courses to keep up with these developments. However, it becomes obvious that t,he regular courses in chemistry (organic, physical, etc.) should he "alive" to these new developments, and should have some relation to the use of chemistry in our
world. This not only helps to prepare the industryoriented graduate but permits the graduate student to make a sensible choice of a field for his future career. The area of polynler chemistry deserves special attention in this connection, perhaps because it has been so under-emphasized. Several considerations make this imperative. I n the first place, polymer chemistry now represents the largest single area of activity in chemical science and technology. The 1962 Rational Register of Scientific and Technical Personnel prepared by the NSF lists 25% of all organic che~nktsin this country (the largest single group) as engaged in the chemistry of plastics, resins and rubbers; and 15% (the largest single group) of all physical chemists in polymer chemistry. Polymer chemistry is important to industry; it also has a wider importance because of its scientific and technological significance in the advancement of civilization. It represents the remarkable achievement of converting some of the chemical resources into materials. The volume of synthetic resins and rubbers produced in the US. is already more than half that of steel. I t isnot surprising that increased emphasis has recently been given to the development of plastics, etc., in the USSR. Finally, the chemistry of polymers deserves special recognition because it has created a whole new science. This includes such aspects as (a) the chain reactions leading to formation of large molecules, (h) the special behavior of these macromolecules in solution, and (c) the explanation of the physical and mechanical properties of a polymeric material in terms of its molecular structure. These offer excellent examples that can he included in the standard chemistry courses, and help to throw more light on the basic principles involved. The articles contained in this issue are intended not as directives for the teaching of courses in polymer chemistry but as source material for the inclusion of appropriate polymer topics in the regular undergraduate chemistry courses. A special effort was made to include a number of laboratory experiments which could help substantially in illustrating the chemistry involved and inarousing the student's interest. I am greatly indebted to the contributors for their time and effort spent on this project. M a u r i c e M o r t o n , Choirman, Education Committee Division of Polymer Chemistry, ACS
Institute of Rubber Research University of Akron, Akron, Ohio 2
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Jaurnol of Chemical Education
