Polymers

• What are monomers?

  Small molecules that join together to form a long chain
• What is a polymer?

  A very long molecule made of repeating units
• What is a repeating unit in a polymer?

  The smallest part of a polymer that repeats throughout the chain
• What is polymerisation?

  A reaction that turns multiple monomers into a polymer
• What are the two types of polymerisation?

  Addition and condensation
• What kind of monomers are involved in addition polymerisation?

  Molecules with C=C bonds, such as alkenes
• What kind of monomers are involved in condensation polymerisation?

  Monomers with two functional groups
• What other products are made in condensation polymerisation?

  Water (normally)
• What does 'n' represent in an equation showing polymerisation?

  A very large number
• What is a natural polymer?

  A polymer that is produced naturally by organisms
• Give four examples of natural polymers.

  Polypeptides, starch, cellulose, DNA
• What are amino acids?

  The building blocks for polypeptides and proteins, which have an amine and a carboxylic acid group
• What is a polypeptide?

  A polymer made from many amino acids
• What is a protein?

  A polymer made from amino acids
• Which monomer makes up starch and cellulose?

  Glucose
• What is DNA?

  A molecule containing genetic information
• Which monomers is DNA made of?

  Nucleotides
• How is DNA arranged?

  In a double helix