Bill M. Culbertson – författare

"Polymer Science and Engineering: Challenges, Needs, and Opportunities," a report issued in 1981 by the National Research Council's ad hoc Panel on Polymer Science and Engineering gives ample support for the urgent need of increased commitment to basic studies on polymers. Needs and opportunities, mentioned in the Panel's list, included polymerization methods, specialty polymers, high performance materials, and in situ (reaction injection molding) polymerization for direct conversion of monomers/oligomers to useful shapes. Clearly, in all these and several other areas, advances in polymer synthesis are needed. Whether one takes a look at the commodity or specialty polymers area or considers areas of growing needs, such as polymers for the automotive, aerospace, electronics, communications, separations, packaging, biomedical, etc., advances in polymer synthesis are needed. Polymeric materials, as they are constantly being modified and improved, fine-tuned for current and additional needs, and more readily adopted by industry and the public, will have a vastly expanding influence on everyday life. However, lack of long-term support of meaningful size for basic research on all facets of polymer chemistry and engineering, with particular emphasis on making needed advances in polymer synthesis, could well stunt the growth of high techn.ology in our country. Expanding this thought, lack of attention to basic research on polymer synthesis could help foster or insure that we won't have materials with performance profiles to meet requirements of emerging technologies and national needs, in a reasonably economic and timely fashion.

"Polymer Science and Engineering: Challenges, Needs, and Opportunities," a report issued in 1981 by the National Research Council''s ad hoc Panel on Polymer Science and Engineering gives ample support for the urgent need of increased commitment to basic studies on polymers. Needs and opportunities, mentioned in the Panel''s list, included polymerization methods, specialty polymers, high performance materials, and in situ (reaction injection molding) polymerization for direct conversion of monomers/oligomers to useful shapes. Clearly, in all these and several other areas, advances in polymer synthesis are needed. Whether one takes a look at the commodity or specialty polymers area or considers areas of growing needs, such as polymers for the automotive, aerospace, electronics, communications, separations, packaging, biomedical, etc., advances in polymer synthesis are needed. Polymeric materials, as they are constantly being modified and improved, fine-tuned for current and additional needs, and more readily adopted by industry and the public, will have a vastly expanding influence on everyday life. However, lack of long-term support of meaningful size for basic research on all facets of polymer chemistry and engineering, with particular emphasis on making needed advances in polymer synthesis, could well stunt the growth of high techn.ology in our country. Expanding this thought, lack of attention to basic research on polymer synthesis could help foster or insure that we won''t have materials with performance profiles to meet requirements of emerging technologies and national needs, in a reasonably economic and timely fashion.

Interest in preparing new polymers peaked about 1966. Since that time, industrial and government support for the synthesis and study of new polymers has steadily declined. Gone are the good days when government funds supported a great push to attain ulti­ mate thermal stability for organic polymeric materials. Gone are the good days when many chemical companies, encouraged by the obvious potential for rewards, had great interest and provided support for preparing new polymers. We now often hear managers say "we have enough polymers" or "all we need to do is find additional and better ways to use existing polymers. " The latter often in­ cludes the statement, "we can get the new materials that are wanted from polymer alloys or blends. " Interest in preparing new monomers has also waned, even though it is well recognized that monomers with special functionality are greatly needed to fine-tune existing polymers for specific tasks. Shrinkage of interest in new monomer and polymer research has not come about solely as a result of the obvious maturity of the polymers industry. Since uses for polymers continue to grow and there is still room for good concepts to study, lack of market growth and fields of study have probably not significantly contribu­ ted to that shrinkage.