How can a scientist or engineer synthesize and utilize polymers to solve our daily problems? This introductory text, aimed at the advanced undergraduate or graduate student, provides future scientists and engineers with the fundamental knowledge of polymer design and synthesis to achieve specific properties required in everyday applications. In the first five chapters, this book discusses the properties and characterization of polymers, since designing a polymer initially requires us to understand the effects of chemical structure on physical and chemical characteristics. Six further chapters discuss the principles of polymerization reactions including step, radical chain, ionic chain, chain copolymerization, coordination and ring opening. Finally, material is also included on how commonly known polymers are synthesized in a laboratory and a factory. This book is suitable for a one semester course in polymer chemistry and does not demand prior knowledge of polymer science.

Professor Su's area of expertise is polymeric materials. She obtained her Ph.D. from University of Massachusetts and did postdoctoral research in Northwestern University. Then she joined Westinghouse Research Center and worked on polymeric materials for electric insulations and electronic devices for 16 years where she won 6 outstanding researcher awards. She joined National Taiwan University in 1996 as full professor and was promoted to distinguished professor in 2009. Her research focuses on innovative materials research including conducting polymers, liquid crystalline polymers and nanocomposites for electronic/solar cell and medical applications. In 2010 she was awarded Outstanding Professor of Chinese Engineer Society (Taiwan) and in 2011 Outstanding Researcher of National Science Council of Taiwan. She has published 162 SCI papers, 193 international conference papers, one book, chapters for 6 books, and has been awarded 26 US patents and 19 Taiwanese patents.