We have pleasure in introducing the Advances in Polymer Science. Polymer occupies the distinct place amongst the material world today and is used in diversified applications such as domestic, packaging, automobile, electrical, aerospace, marine etc. Therefore it is an important area of research and recent update is the need of the hour. High stiffness, good thermal resistance, reduced thermal expansion coefficient, better resistance to yield and fracture toughness etc. of polymer composites have explored their applications in engineering structure, aircraft, helicopters, spacecrafts, boats, ships, offshore platforms, automobiles, sports goods, chemical processing equipment and civil infrastructure such as bridges and buildings. Recent emphasis is on Green Composites based on lignocelluloses materials. An increased interest in obtaining polymeric materials with nano particles has been observed. Important applications are sunscreen, cosmetics, food products and packaging; gecko tape; clothing, disinfectants and household appliances; surface coatings, paints, outdoor furniture varnishes; and fuel catalyst. Nanotechnology may have its biggest impact on the medical industry in future. Patients will drink fluids containing nanorobots programmed to attack and reconstruct the molecular structure of cancer cells and viruses. There's even speculation that nanorobots could slow or reverse the aging process, and life expectancy could increase significantly. Nanorobots could also be programmed to perform delicate surgeries; nanosurgeons could work at a level a thousand times more precise than the sharpest scalpel. They could be programmed to perform cosmetic surgery, rearranging your atoms to change your ears, nose, eye color or any other physical feature you wish to alter. Biopolymers are another area of polymer research due to non biodegradable nature of polymers and is a challenge to polymer scientists. Biopolymers are renewable plastic materials manufactured from biomass such as corn, wheat, sugar cane, and potatoes. Once the biopolymer is placed in a compost environment, they are broken down into CO2 and water by microorganisms, usually within 6 months. Bio polymers are currently being used for food service ware, blown starch pellets for shipping fragile goods, house wares, packaging, film, pesticide soil pins, substrate mats, and even spun into fabric for apparel. Improving efficiency is a major concern for the production of bioplastics. Therefore, researchers are still working on refining the processes used in order to make bioplastics viable alternatives to petrochemical plastics. Selection of above chapters such as polymer composites, bio polymers, nano polymers, polymer synthesis, misc. have been done keeping in view of interest of the researchers and demand of industries. This book is an attempt in this direction and hope that will be useful to students, academicians, researchers and industrialist engaged in this area.
