British Polymer Journal 21 (1989) 445-446

Book Reviews

Chemical reactions on polymers ACS Symposium Series No. 364 Edited by J. L. Benham and J. F. Kinstle, American Chemical Society, Washington DC, 1987. pp. xii + 483, price $99.95 (USA and Canada) $1 19.95 (rest of world). ISBN 0-8412-1448-4

This volume reports a symposium held jointly by the Divisions of Inorganic Chemistry, Polymer Chemistry, and Polymer Materials Science and Engineering, of the ACS, held in Denver in April 1987. Chemical reaction on polymers has, compara- tively recently, become an active field of polymer science. Such modifications can alter polymer surfaces, provide grafts and side-chain substituents, and allow characterization of certain polymers. The 33 papers presented are grouped into six topics: Reactive Polymers; New Synthesis Routes; Surface Modifica- tion of Polymers; Speciality Polymers with Polar or Ionic Groups; Chemical Modification for Analytical Characteriz- ation; Chemical Modification for Functionalization.

Each section has an introductory lecture, and the individual papers together provide an acceptable overview of each topic. Specific aspects include polymer modification for biological applications, radiation chemistry of polymers, and the use of dopants to improve polymer properties. Most reports of symposia tend to be ephemeral: this group of papers provides useful information on many aspects of several types of functionalized polymers. With some difficulty (the indexing is poor), chemists interested in the many aspects of functionally modified polymers will find much useful material in this camera- ready publication.

C. A. Finch

Encyclopedia of polymer science and engineering Executive Editor Jacqueline I. Kroschwitz, John Wiley & Sons, New York, 1988. Volume 13, Poly(pheny1ene ether) to Radical polymerization. pp. xxiv + 867, single volume price E120.00.

Volume 14, Radiopaque polymers to Safety. pp. xxiv + 827, single volume price E l 20.00.

(For subscription details see British Polymer Journal, 17 (1985) 321.

ISBN 0-47 1-80945-4

ISBN 0-47 1-80446-2

Volumes 13 and 14 continue this developing series with many articles of major interest to polymer scientists.

In Volume 13, there are substantial sections on: poly(phenylene ethers) (30 pp.. from General Electric, US); polyphosphazenes (10 pp.); polypyrroles (13 pp., from Ciba- Geigy); polyquinoxalines (22 pp.); polysaccharides (60 pp.) and synthetic polysaccharides (14 pp.); polysilanes (24 pp.); polysul- fides (10 pp., from Thiokol); polysulfones (15 pp., from Union Carbide); polyureas (30 pp., from Chiriac, of Jassy, Romania);

polyurethanes (60 pp., from Mobay); propylene polymers (65 pp., from Himont, Italy and US); proteins (and their structure) (96 pp., from MRC laboratory, Cambridge); protein biosynthesis (22 pp.); and finally, an authoritative article on ‘radical polymerization’ (160 pp., by C. H. Bamford). Apart from these excellent descriptions of polymers and their mechanisms of formation, the volume also includes useful articles for polymer technologists on ‘pressure sensitive adhesives’, ‘printing-ink vehicles’, ‘product design’, ‘process modelling’, and ‘processing by computer control’.

Volume 14 includes a major series of articles on ‘rubber’, with discussion of hard rubber, natural rubber, rubber chemicals, derivatives and reclaiming processes (135 pp. in all). Apart from this, the volume is something of a ‘mixed bag’, with much interesting material including: Raman spectroscopy (37 pp.); rayon (28 pp.); reaction injection moulding (28 pp.); reactive extrusion (20 pp.); reactions of polymers (69 pp., by Sherring- ton); reactor technology (50 pp.); refractometry (40 pp.); reinforced plastics and reinforcement (82 pp. together); natural resins (1 5 pp.); rheological measurements (90 pp.); rheoptical properties (80 pp.); ring-opening polymerization (25 pp., from Kyoto University); robotics (12 pp.); and rotational moulding ( 1 1 pp.). These volumes, then, include ‘something for nearly everybody’; articles are well-edited, and supported by extensive references.

The volumes of this series should be available to every laboratory (and most production facilities) concerned with polymers.

C. A. Finch

Medical applications of piezoelectric polymers: ferroelectricity and related phenomena, Volume 5 Edited by P. M. Galletti, D. E. De Rossi and A. S. De Reggi, Gordon and Breach Science Publishers, New York, 1988. pp. xi + 306, price $89.00. ISBN 2-88124-277-4

The book reports a symposium held in Pisa, Italy in June 1984, complemented by selected additional papers which illustrate the progress which has been made in the medical application of piezoelectric polymers. There are no references after mid- 1983 and these papers have already been published in Ferroelectrics. Developments in the use of ultrasonics for medical diagnosis made a significant step forward in the early ~ O S , but the reader is not made aware of the progress made since 1984 in the area of computer image enhancement and medical diagnosis in cardiac echocardiograms and vascular disease. The book is, however, a useful summary of the underlying physical problems behind medical ultrasonics.

The papers are collected under a series of headings: physical properties of piezoelectric and pyroelectric polymers; potential for applications in medical devices; low frequency sensors;

443 British Polymer Journal (21) (1989)-0 1989 Society of Chemical Industry. Printed in Great Britain