An Introduction to Plastics (2^nd Ed., 2nd, Completely Revised Edition)

This second edition of An Introduction to Plastics is the answer to manifold requests for an updated version by the readership. Since publication of the first edition in 1993, the field of plastics has seen tremendous development. Their manufacture and properties are discussed and correlated to the molecular and supermolecular properties of polymers. The contents have been thoroughly revised, restructured and enlarged. Several topics such as polymer composites and mixtures, morphology, flow properties and processing have been given more space, and chapters on electrical conductivity and non-linear optical properties have been newly added.

Reviews of the first edition:

"This book presents a precise, yet non-mathematical introduction to plastics, their raw materials, syntheses, properties and applications." (B. Sillion, Revue de l'Institut Francais du Petrole)

"The volume is excellently written, with a simple, straightforward and comprehensive index. It provides an overview of all plastics, including raw materials: manufacture, structure, processing, properties and, of course, applications" (D.W. Taylor and J.F. Kennedy, Polymer International)

"This book has all the earmarks of becoming a guide to or even a reference book for polymers in structural applications" (Willi Kreuder, Acta Polymerica)

INTRODUCTION
Polymers
Plastics
History of Plastics
Economic Importance
MOLECULAR STRUCTURE OF POLYMERS
Constitution
Molar Masses and Molar Mass Distributions
Configurations
Conformations
POLYMER MANUFACTURE
Raw Materials
Polymer Syntheses: Overview
Chain Polymerizations and Polyeliminations
Polycondensations and Polyadditions
Polymer Reactions
PLASTICS MANUFACTURE
Homogenization and Compounding
Additives
Processing
SUPERMOLECULAR STRUCTURES
Noncrystalline States
Polymer Crystals
Mesophases
Gels
Thermal Properties
Rheological Properties
Mechanical Properties
Electrical Properties
Optical Properties
Polymer Composites
Waste Disposal

Prof. Dr. Hans-Georg Elias was born in 1928. He studied at the Technical University of Hanover, Germany, and received his Ph.D. at the Technical University of Munich in 1957. After habilitation at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology (Zurich) in 1961, he was appointed Senior Lecturer and later a professor of organic-chemical technology. In 1971, he became founding president of and professor of Polymer Science at the Michigan Molecular Institute (MMI) in Midland, Michigan. During these years, he also worked as consultant to the polymer industry in Germany, Switzerland, and the United States and expert witness to companies and the court. He was an in-house consultant at the Dow Chemical Co., Midland (MI) (1983/84) and independent consultant between 1985 and 1993. He continues to teach at MMI.

Professor Elias has published more than 200 scientific and technical papers and two patents on the synthesis characterization, structure, properties, and application of synthetic and biological polymers. His ten authored or edited books have been published in English, French, German, and/or Russian, one of these, a 4-volume work, in six invitation in fifteen countries and was a member of editorial boards of five polymer journals.