Answer to Question #147406 in Organic Chemistry for Anne Bijo

Question

Polystyrene can be made more rigid by polymerizing with divinylbenzene (shown below). How does the divinylbenzene make the polymer more rigid? (2 Marks)

Answer 1

Divinylbenzene forms bonds with two polystyrene chains at once and chemical cross-link occurs. Chemical cross-linking makes it more difficult for the polymer chain segments to move. Therefore, the cross-linked polymer is more rigid.