A novel synthesis of condensation polymers was investigated by two different routes. through an interchange and a ring-opening reaction, respectively. It was found that an interchange reaction between amine and ester occurred easily to form an amide compound when an amine hydrogen was replaced by a hydroxyethyl group and thus, N-hydroxyethyl amino acid ester or N, N- (bishydroxyethyl) alkylene diamine and dicarboxylic acid ester gave polyamide in alcohol solution at room temperature in the presence of a basic catalyst. N- (Hydroxyethyl) β-alanine ester was obtained by the Michael-type addition reaction of ethanolamine with acrylate in a good yield and this monomer gave N- (hydroxyethyl) poly-β-alanine in alcohol solution with lithium catalyst. Reaction conditions to obtain a high molecular weight polymer from this monomer were mainly investigated and reaction, mechanism was proposed for the interchange reaction between ester and amide groups from results of model reactions.
Ring-opening polymerization leads to form condensation polymers. Bifunctional cyclic compounds having two functional groups within the same ring, such as lactam ether, lactam thioether, lactam sulfone, lactam imine, were synthesized and their polymerization was carried out with various catalysts. It was found that the polymerizability of these bifunctional cyclic compounds showed a marked difference from that of monofunctional cyclic compound owing to the interaction between the two functional groups through the ring. Ring-opening copolymerization of cyclic phosphorous compounds with various lactams was also carried out and it was found that the copolymer composition varied with the kind of lactam.

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In order to calculate the mechanical anisotropy of the stretched bulk polymer, we must take up to the 4th products of direction, cosine that derive the relations between the elastic compliance of the structural unit and those obtained in an arbitrary diτection in the speci-men, as the relations are given by 4th lank tensor.
By using orientation distdbution obtained from X-ray diffraction of stretched polycrystall ine materials, Roe et al. proposed a method to evaluate the crystalline erientation distribution function with respect to the stretching direction. In this report, the Roe's method is further modified so as to evaluate the crystalline orientatien distribution function with respect to an arbitrary direction fxed in the specimen, and then to calculate the mechanical anisotropy of the specimen. Hence, by using a series of spherical harmonics, the average values of the 4th products of each direction cosine are evaluated by the averages of orientation distribution of the crystalline plane normal vectors obtained by X-ray diffraction measurement, and then, by using these results and the elastic compliance of structural unit, we describe the method to calculate the Young's modulus of the arbitrary direction in the specimen.
Finally, as the determination of the structural unit plays an important part in the practical performance of the above described calculation, we proposed, for example, a structural unit model composed of crystalline and amorphous phases and produced by cennecting these phases in parallel or series to the three principal directions, and then the method to evaluate the elastic compliances of the structural unit in terms of its intrinsic moduli.

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The linearity of a calibration curves used in GPC is discussed. The usual method for obtaining a linear calibration curve over a wide range has been to connect columns packed with gels of different permeabilities. However, This method cannot ensure a linearity over a wide range from a few hundred to a few million of molecular weights. Use of a new column packed with a mixture of gels of different permeabilityies is described, which has been proved to be capable of giving linear calibration curves over a wide range, shch as from acetone to a few million level.
The number of columns to be connected-the analysis time-can be determined only according to the resolving power required, because it is not necessary to connect many different columns for the purpose to obtain the linearity of calibration curves.
The suitable mixing ratios are determined from the additivity of the calibration curves after correction of cell response. This report also concerns the comparsion of elution patterns obtained with linear and nonlinear calibration curves.

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The values of the critical shear rate at which the precipitates are produced from an aqueous solution, the viscosity and the shear stress were obtained from the viscosity measurements at different shear rates of an aqueous solution of poly (vinyl alcohol) derived from poly (vinyl trifluoroacetate). These values were applied to the equation of motion in the conical nozzle, and the length of the conical nozzle, the velocity at the inlet or exit of the conical nozzle, the shear rate at the inlet and the pressure at the inlet were calculated.
The calculations of the conical nozzle were carried out on the following assumptions, i) the critical shear rate occurs at θ=α (α: semiangle of the cone) in the exit of the conical nozzle, or ii) the critical shear rate occurs at θ=1/2α. The calculations were carried out only for the Newtonian solution.

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The birefringence change of polyethylene terephthaiate filament extruded from a spinneret were examined along the melt spinning way. For this purpose the optical retardations of the extruded stream were measured photoelectrically using cross nicol method and the diameters were determined photographically.
When the extrusion rate from a spinneret hole increases, the optical retardation or birefringence begins to appear at some distance from the spinneret. For example when the extrusion rate is 1.0, 2.6 and 6.3g/min, the distance is about 20, 50 and 120cm, respectively, at the extrusion temperature 290°C.
When the wind-up velocity increases, the distance where the birefringences reach the final values become larger and the final values also increase. For example, when the extrusion rate is 1.0g/min and the wind up velocity is 160, 400 and 1000m/min, the distance is more than 40, 60 and 150cm, respectively.
The mechanism of molecular orientation in the melt spinning way was discussed using a Maxwell model and a strain optical relation.

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Styrene-methacrylic acid copolymer obtained by suspension polymerization was more strongly hazed than that by emulsion polymerization. A comparative study of the behovior of emulsion, suspension and bulk polymerizations was made to elucidate this phenomenon. In bulk polymerization, methacrylic acid had a tendency to copolymerize in excess, in the initial stage of polymerization, but in emulsion and suspension polymerization, this tendency decreased to some extent. However, as far as the oil phase was concerned, the same monomer composition-polymer composition curve was obtained in every copolymerization method. In bulk and suspension polymerization, the dependence of [η] on the conversion was more than that in emulsion polymerization. This means that the polymer obtained by the former methods had a much broader molecular weight distribution than that by the latter.
Accordingly, the haze that appeared in the copolymer obtained by suspension polymerization was ascribed to the result of the superposition of the broad molecular weight distribution and heterogeneity of the copolymer composition.

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To improve the hazes or crazing resistance of styrene-methacrylic acid copolymer (StMAA copolymer) and its ionically crosslinked product, ethyl acrylate (EA) was introduced into the polymer and its effect was investigated.
The haze of St-MAA-EA terpolymers and its ionically crosslinked products decreased in proportion to EA content. When EA content became more than 5wt%, the haze almost vanished. On the other hand, EA had no effect on improvement of the crazing resistance.
The stress crazing resistance was not influenced by viscosity of the base polymer, degree of neutralization or temperature of injection molding. It was only affected by the difference between softening temeprature of the polymer and mold temperature of injection molding. When the temperature differences became less than 25°C, no environmental stress crazing appeared, that is to say, even if they were ionically crosslinked, they had an upper limit of heat resistance and in the case that the mold temperature was 90°C the highest softening temperature of the polymer was about 115°C by vicat softening point.
Some other physical properties were also studied.

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Various dimethacrylates (DMA) were copolymerized with styrene or methyl methacrylate, and the effect of the chain length between the two vinyl groups in DMA on the copolymerization reaction of DMA and the properties of the copolymers obtained was discussed.
The results were as follows.
1) The rate of copolymerization at high conversion was affected by the chain length of DMA. The rate of copolymerization of bis- (ethyleneglycol) phthalate dimethacrylate (MEPh-1), a monomer having a long chain between two vinyl groups, was more rapid than that of ethyleneglycol dimethacrylate (EDMA) having a short chain.
2) The crosslinking efficiency was affected by the chain length of DMA. The crosslinking efficiency of MEPh-1 copolymer was higher than that of EDMA copolymer.
3) The glass transition temperature of the copolymers obtained was independent of their crosslinkage density.
4) Impact resistance and Vicat softening temperature of the copolymers obtained were markedly affected by both the chain length of DMA and the crosslinkage density, but Mar resistance and tensile and flexural strength were affected only by the crosslinkage density.

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Polycarboxy methylene (PCM) samples were prepared from polymaleic anhydride and polydiethyl fumarate obtained by radical polymerization of the corresponding monomers. Two PCM samples showed almost the same infrared absorption spectra and polyelectrolyte behaviors, It seems, therefore that they have nearly the same stereo-structures. The potentiometric titration curve of PCM showed a distinct inflection near half degree of neutralization.
Several polyitaconic acid (PIA) samples were also prepared by radical polymerization of itaconic acid (IA), dimethyl itaconate and itaconic anhydride. PIA's obtained by polymerization of IA in dilute aqueous solutions or in bulk at a higher temperature (130°C) showed the infrared absorption spectra and polyelectrolyte behaviors different from the other PIA's. These results may be attributed mainly to difference in stereostructures of the PIA samples.

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Maleic acid-ethylvinyl ether copolymers were derived from alternative copolymers ofmaleic anhydride-ethylvinyl ether and diethyl fumarate-ethylvinyl ether. Polyelectrolytebehaviors of the two polymers were almost the same, therefore these polymers seem tohave similar stereo-structures.
As the polymers with more hydrophobic structures maleic acid-styrene copolymers (MA-St) were derived from alternative copolymers of maleic anhydride-styrene (A) and diethylfumarate-styrene (B). These two MA-St samples showed inflection near half degree ofneutralization in potentimetric and conductometric titration curves, but polyelectrolytebehaviors of the two polymers examined in detail were distinctly different from each other. This may be mainly due to the difference in stereo-structures. The MA-St derived fromB seems to have a greater tendency toward tighter coiling in aqueous solutions than theMA-St derived from A.

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Copolymers of vinyl acetate-vinyl alcohol (A), vinyl acetate-vinylpyrrolidone (B), vinyl acetate-acrylamide (C), vinyl acetate-dimethyl acrylamide (D), vinyl acetate-methacrylamide (E), vinyl acetate-N-methylolacrylamide (F), vinyl acetate-acrylic acid (G), allyl acetate-vinylpyrrolidone (H), allyl acetate-acrylamide (I), -N-acetoxymethylacryl-amide-acrylamide (J), -N-acetoxymethyl-amide-methacrylamide (K), were hydrolyzed with hydrochloric acid or potassium hydroxide in water. Hydrolysis rates of A, B and H were similar to those of simple acetates. C, D, E, F and I were smoothly hydrolyzed with potassium hydroxide, but hydrolysis rates of these acetates with hydrochloric acid were very small. Acid hydrolysis rate of G was normal, but its alkaline hydrolysis rate was very small. Acid hydrolysis rates of J and K were much greater than those of the other polymeric and simple acetates. Some discussions were made for these results.

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