Below are three polymers, 6, 6 nylon, polyethylene, and polyvinylchloride. 6, 6

Question

Below are three polymers, 6, 6 nylon, polyethylene, and polyvinylchloride. 6, 6 nylon is a condensation polymer, with a byproduct of H_2O. The other are addition polymers. Note Hs carbons have been omitted for clarity (all C have enough H to have exactly 4 bonds each). What are the monomers from which 6, 6 nylon would be synthesized? What is the monomer from which polyethylene would be synthesized? What is the monomer from which polyvinylchloride would be synthesized? Use your knowledge of intermolecular forces to explain the trend in melting points these polymers.

Explanation / Answer

a) The monomers from which Nylon 6,6 is synthesized are Hexamethylene diamine ( H2N(CH2)6NH2) and adipic acid ( (CH2)4(COOH)2 ) and both the monomers contain 6 carbons each.and the reaction is shown below

n HOOC-(CH2)4-COOH + n H2N-(CH2)6-NH2 [-OC-( CH2)4-CO-NH-(CH2)6-NH-]n + 2n H2O

b) The monomer from which Polyethylene is synthesized is Ethylene ( C2 H4 )

c) The monomer from which Poly vinyl chloride is synthesized is Vinyl chloride ( C2H3Cl or H2C = CHCl)

d) The intermolecular forces present in polyethylene are dipole -induced dipole interactions ,and the melting point of polyethylene is around 120 degree C . PVC consists of polar molecules which are attracted to each other by dipole-dipole interactions due to electrostatic attractions of a chlorine atom in one molecule to a hydrogen atom in another atom: and because of this it has a slightly high melting point than polyethylene and generally the melting point of PVC is around 160 degree C . In Nylon 6,6 the main intermolecular forces present are the hydrogen bonding. the nitrogen bonded hydrogens of one chain will form an hydrogen bond very strongly with the carbonyl oxygens of the other chain and because of this strong hydrogen bonding nylon 6,6 will have a high melting point than polyethylene and pvc. and the melting point of nylon 6,6 is around 268.8 degree C.

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