Substitution Polymers?

DanteSinger

Hello, everyone. So, this is my first time doing Chemistry at school and today my teacher assigned each student a topic in Chemistry to research and give a short presentation on it on Monday. He assigned me the topic of, Substitution Polymers. So, tonight I thought I might do some research on it. I searched online but...haha...nothing came up. All I keep getting is Addition and Condensation Polymers. So I am confused and a little scared now...what am I to do on Monday, because he has never taught these topics before.
Is there such a thing as Substitution Polymers? If there is, can someone explain this to me or give me a link to a site that can, so I can at least have something to show on Monday?
I am not ask you to do my presentation for me, haha. I just need some information, please.
Thank you in advance.

epenguin

Maybe I am having a hazy moment - I am struggling to see all that clearcut a distinction between substitution and condensation.

Wiki says "Many condensation reactions are nucleophilic acyl substitutions. Carboxylic acids react with chlorine donors such as thionyl chloride or phosphorus trichloride to acid chlorides, with alcohols to esters in esterfication and carboxylic acids selfcondense to acid anhydrides. " and "Many condensation reactions follow a nucleophilic acyl substitution ".

However typically in condensation reactions a product is water and in substitution reactions Ha^-.

A bit almost chemists' slang? - let them put me right if I mislead you.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Poly%28...ne_vinylene%29 could start to give you some ideas.

There seems scope for an essay or talk setting out a few chemical principles and examples, and the interesting and quite current applications and physical properties with as far as possible some physical rationale of the properties limited to a couple of important examples (should be manageable, you are not asked to write an encyclopaedia) .

Another starter http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Conducting_polymers

DanteSinger

Hello, sorry for the late reply. I was doing some research and reading the links you gave me. I'm thinking that condensation and substitution polymers may very well be the same thing, as well. I will approach my teacher tomorrow and ask him just in case.
Thanks for your help.