Once the world went to war, our natural sources of latex, wool, silk, and other materials were cut off, making the use of synthetics critical. During this time period, we saw the use of nylon, acrylic, neoprene, SBR, polyethylene, and many more polymers take the place of natural materials that were no longer available. Since then, the polymer industry has continued to grow and has evolved into one of the fastest growing industries in the U.S. and in the world. Many common classes of polymers are composed of hydrocarbons. These polymers are specifically made of small units bonded into long chains.
Carbon makes up the backbone of the molecule and hydrogen atoms are bonded along the backbone.
Below is a diagram of polyethylene, the simplest polymer structure. There are polymers that contain only carbon and hydrogen. Polypropylene, polybutylene, polystyrene, and polymethylpentene are examples of these. Even though the basic makeup of many polymers is carbon and hydrogen, other elements can also be involved. Oxygen, chlorine, fluorine, nitrogen, silicon, phosphorous, and sulfur are other elements that are found in the molecular makeup of polymers.