ABSTRACT
Every material that we come across has a natural origin. We humans are incapable of creating something out of nothing. No matter what we do, we can only create something out of something else, and are bound by the mass conservation law. As more scienti c advancements are made,
we are better able to harness natural resources and use them for our bene t. Polymers, like wood and metal, are products made from natural sources that can be used for a variety of purposes. Indeed, producing and using polymers has greatly enhanced our standard of living and altered modern culture.1,2
The basic ingredients of polymers come from petroleum, plants or animals. After these ingredients are synthesized, polymers are imbued with the durability useful for many applications. This branch of science began to draw global attention in the nineteenth century and took off in the twentieth century, when polymer synthesis was established in the lab, followed by a scaling up to mass production. It became extremely popular after World War II (WWII) and within 30 years, its consumption exceeded both wood and metal as the most used material in the modern world. When nylon was introduced in the late 1930s by DuPont, it soon became a favorite in the textile and clothing industry.3 Nowadays, plastic bags and foam packaging are commonly used as everyday polymer products.
