Question

Plexiglass is a polymer of ______.
A) Acrylic acid
B) Methacrylate
C) Methyl methacrylate
D) Methyl propacrylate

Answer 1

Hint:Plexiglass is also known as acrylite, lucite, perclax, etc. Pexiglass is a transparent thermoplastic. It is used in a form of sheet as an alternative to glass. Pexiglass is lightweight and has higher resistance to shattering.

 Complete step by step answer:
We know that plexiglass is a transparent thermoplastic. It is used in a form of sheet as an alternative to glass. Pexiglass is lightweight and has higher resistance to shattering.
Chemically, plexiglass is a polymer of methyl methacrylate. Methyl methacrylate has high tensile strength, transparency, UV tolerance, impact strength, chemical resistance and heat resistance. Methyl methacrylate is a versatile material and is used in a wide range of fields and applications like rear-lights, vehicles, appliances and lenses for glasses.
Methyl methacrylate has a very high molecular weight and a very high moulding strength.
Methyl methacrylate is commonly used because of its moderate properties, easy handling and processing and low cost. Methyl methacrylate swells and dissolves in various organic solvents. Methyl methacrylate has an easily hydrolysable ester group and thus, it has poor resistance to many chemicals.
The structure of methyl methacrylate is as follows:

Thus, plexiglass is a polymer of methyl methacrylate.
Thus, the correct option is (C).

Note:Methyl methacrylate is produced by emulsion polymerization, solution polymerization and bulk polymerization. The glass transition temperature of methyl methacrylate varies in a wide range. Thus, at room temperature methyl methacrylate is an organic glass. The common moulding processes like injection moulding, compression moulding and extrusion are used for moulding methyl methacrylate.