copolymer

American  

[koh-pol-uh-mer] / koʊˈpɒl ə mər /

noun

1. a chemical compound of high molecular weight produced by polymerizing two or more different monomers together.

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copolymer British  

/ kəʊˈpɒlɪmə /

noun

1. a chemical compound of high molecular weight formed by uniting the molecules of two or more different compounds (monomers) Compare polymer oligomer

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copolymer Scientific  

/ kō-pŏl′ə-mər /

1. A polymer of two or more different monomers. The synthetic rubber used to make tire treads and shoe soles, for example, is a copolymer made of the monomers butadiene and styrene.

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Etymology

Origin of copolymer

First recorded in 1935–40; co- + polymer

Example Sentences

The researchers came up with a winning combination that includes a polymer called pluronic, which is a type of block copolymer that can self-assemble into spheres called micelles.

From Science Daily • Mar. 12, 2024

At launch, each motor had about 1.1 million pounds of polybutadiene acrylonitrile copolymer propellant, which has the consistency of a pencil eraser.

From Los Angeles Times • Oct. 11, 2023

Even the name of the company that applied for approval is redacted, and the records give only a generic name for the chemicals: fluorinated acrylic alkylamino copolymer.

From New York Times • Jul. 12, 2021

Short copolymer chains refract shorter wavelengths of light: ultraviolet, blues and greens.

From Scientific American • Nov. 13, 2020

Top right, the chromatogram of the sample isolated using the SMA copolymer, showing traces for protein at 280 nm, haem c at 410 nm and haem a at 605 nm.

From Nature • Apr. 24, 2018