Gutta percha has the same backbone as this material, but in the trans orientation rather than cis. For 10 points each:
[10m] Name this material made of isoprene monomers. Sulfur bridges were used to connect polymer chains of this bio-based material in an early cross-linking process discovered in the 1840s.
ANSWER: rubber [or natural rubber or latex rubber; prompt on elastomer; prompt on polyterpene or polyisoprene] (The crosslinking process is vulcanization, developed by Charles Goodyear.)
[10h] Extensive chemical cross-linking of polymers will form these insoluble network materials. Unlike thermoplastics, which only have physical cross-links, these materials cannot be remelted and remolded.
ANSWER: thermosets [or thermosetting polymers; prompt on plastics]
[10e] Crosslinking polymer chains greatly increases their already large value for this quantity. This quantity, often measured in daltons, is the sum total mass of a compound’s atoms.
ANSWER: molecular weight [or molecular mass; or molar mass; prompt on weight or mass or size]
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