ABSTRACT
The final judgment on the suitability of a polymer for a given application usually involves a complex combination of properties. Some of these properties are inherent in the physical state of the polymer. A glassy material will not stretch, nor will an uncross-linked, amorphous polymer support a stress indefinitely when it is above its Tg. Some properties are inherent in the chemical structure of the polymer. Hydrolysis, thermal dissociation, and toxicity may be fixed by the reactivity of certain groups within the polymer structure.
