Polymer science just celebrated its centennial, and the global polymer market now exceeds $500 billion per year. Despite this history and stature, many fundamental aspects of the way polymers behave are only recently being uncovered. Among those is the way polymers respond to the mechanical forces that are central to many of their uses and contribute to their environmental impact. This talk will argue that behaviors we might think of as purely physical in nature, such as tearing a contact lens or blowing out a tire, present a range of new opportunities when they are instead viewed as chemical processes. Examples will be shared of how chemical advances are allowing polymer molecular behavior “at its physical limits” to be explored and ultimately controlled, and speculation will be presented regarding emerging technological possibilities and open, fundamental questions.
Location and Address
Chevron 150