the much more complex biosystems. In 1927, jointly with Gustav Mie, the Freiburg
physicist and expert in scattering and X-ray diffraction, he published his research
on “the polymeric formaldehyde, a model for cellulose” [12]. This highly successful interplay of polymer chemistry and physics in Freiburg clearly demonstrated
that purely synthetic polymers can form fibers that resemble natural fibers. At that
time, fiber formation was thought be an exclusive domain of biopolymers and living
organisms such as spiders. Without any doubt, this paradigm shift in scientific
conception has stimulated the development of synthetic fibers, as started by Wallace Carothers, who during the 1930s pioneered synthetic polyamide and polyester
fibers at Du Pont. Staudinger’s bioinspired molecular polymer design opened a new
dimension for the development of advanced polymeric materials in chemistry and
biotechnology, going well beyond the scope of the purely “trial-and-error” development typical of the very early days of polymer technology. Moreover, the insight
that he gained into the crystallization behavior and crystal structure of
polyoxymethylene clearly proved that only a very small section of the polymer
chain is allocated in the crystallographic unit cell of a crystalline polymer. At the
end of the 1920s, crystallographers gave up their opposition and vividly engaged
themselves in polymer research.
In Freiburg, Giulio Natta from the Polytecnico di Milano, Italy, learned how to
use the tool of crystallography, This new experience was essential to his research
when he identified the molecular architecture of isotactic polypropylene. In his
Nobel speech, in 1963, Giulio Natta stated [13]: “After I had the luck to meet
Professor Staudinger in Freiburg in 1932, I was attracted by the study of linear high
polymers and tried to determine their lattice structures. To this end I also employed
the electron-diffraction methods which I had learned from Dr. Seemann in Freiburg
and which appeared particularly suitable for the examination of thin-oriented films.
I applied both X-ray and electron-diffraction methods also to the study of the
structure of the heterogeneous catalysts used for certain important organic industrial syntheses.” Staudinger is the father of macromolecular chemistry, but he also is
the pioneer of bioinspired chemistry and molecular bionics [14].
3 Staudinger’s Viscosity Law
In the pioneering days, an important shortcoming hampered the progress in polymer
sciences, which was the lack of methods for molecular weight determination.
Staudinger’s solution viscosity measurements were prone to be sensitive to the
molecular weight of polymers, solvent interaction, and to formation of colloidal
aggregates. Significant progress was made in 1926 when Svedberg and Fa ˚hraeus
developed the ultracentrifugation technique for protein characterization. They measured the equilibrium sedimentation of hemoglobin [15]. This research afforded
clear experimental proof for the existence of high molecular weight proteins.
In 1929, Staudinger tried to bring an ultracentrifuge to Freiburg. However, his
proposal was rejected by the Notgemeinschaft der Deutschen Wissenschaft, the
Hermann Staudinger and Polymer Research in Freiburg
25
physicist and expert in scattering and X-ray diffraction, he published his research
on “the polymeric formaldehyde, a model for cellulose” [12]. This highly successful interplay of polymer chemistry and physics in Freiburg clearly demonstrated
that purely synthetic polymers can form fibers that resemble natural fibers. At that
time, fiber formation was thought be an exclusive domain of biopolymers and living
organisms such as spiders. Without any doubt, this paradigm shift in scientific
conception has stimulated the development of synthetic fibers, as started by Wallace Carothers, who during the 1930s pioneered synthetic polyamide and polyester
fibers at Du Pont. Staudinger’s bioinspired molecular polymer design opened a new
dimension for the development of advanced polymeric materials in chemistry and
biotechnology, going well beyond the scope of the purely “trial-and-error” development typical of the very early days of polymer technology. Moreover, the insight
that he gained into the crystallization behavior and crystal structure of
polyoxymethylene clearly proved that only a very small section of the polymer
chain is allocated in the crystallographic unit cell of a crystalline polymer. At the
end of the 1920s, crystallographers gave up their opposition and vividly engaged
themselves in polymer research.
In Freiburg, Giulio Natta from the Polytecnico di Milano, Italy, learned how to
use the tool of crystallography, This new experience was essential to his research
when he identified the molecular architecture of isotactic polypropylene. In his
Nobel speech, in 1963, Giulio Natta stated [13]: “After I had the luck to meet
Professor Staudinger in Freiburg in 1932, I was attracted by the study of linear high
polymers and tried to determine their lattice structures. To this end I also employed
the electron-diffraction methods which I had learned from Dr. Seemann in Freiburg
and which appeared particularly suitable for the examination of thin-oriented films.
I applied both X-ray and electron-diffraction methods also to the study of the
structure of the heterogeneous catalysts used for certain important organic industrial syntheses.” Staudinger is the father of macromolecular chemistry, but he also is
the pioneer of bioinspired chemistry and molecular bionics [14].
3 Staudinger’s Viscosity Law
In the pioneering days, an important shortcoming hampered the progress in polymer
sciences, which was the lack of methods for molecular weight determination.
Staudinger’s solution viscosity measurements were prone to be sensitive to the
molecular weight of polymers, solvent interaction, and to formation of colloidal
aggregates. Significant progress was made in 1926 when Svedberg and Fa ˚hraeus
developed the ultracentrifugation technique for protein characterization. They measured the equilibrium sedimentation of hemoglobin [15]. This research afforded
clear experimental proof for the existence of high molecular weight proteins.
In 1929, Staudinger tried to bring an ultracentrifuge to Freiburg. However, his
proposal was rejected by the Notgemeinschaft der Deutschen Wissenschaft, the
Hermann Staudinger and Polymer Research in Freiburg
25