Practice Problem 3

Classify the products of the following reactions as either addition or condensation polymers.

(a) Poly(methyl methacrylate), sold as Lucite or Plexiglass.

(b) Nylon 6

Solution

(a) Poly(methyl methacrylate) is an addition polymer because every atom in the monomer ends up in the repeating unit of the polymer.

(b) Nylon 6 is a condensation polymer because a molecule of HCl is eliminated each time a monomer is added to the chain.