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This fourth in a series of annual events attracted 141 delegates,
of whom 46 were from countries other than South Africa, including
four African countries. Fifty-three students actively participated.
The UNESCO School was opened by Dr. Benjamin Ntim, Science and Technology
Advisor of UNESCO, Pretoria. He discussed the role of UNESCO, both
at present and in the future, as a proactive body in promoting science
and technology awareness and in helping to provide education for
the underprivileged especially in Africain all fields
of chemistry. Twenty-two experts presented plenary lectures on a
wide range of subjects, recording the state-of-the art in various
fields, often encompassing the last few years of research. Bringing
together several experts into similar fields led to some lively
discussions and a sharing of knowledge, particularly about the availability
of analytical subroutines for certain analytical equipment that
the manufacturer often neglects to explain to the customer. One
such example is the measurement of polymer crystallinity by differential
scanning calorimetry (DSC).
The IUPAC Conference was opened by Prof. Robert Gilbert, President
of IUPAC 's Macromolecular Division, Key Centre for Colloids, School
of Chemistry F11, University of Sydney, Australia. He explained
the proactive role of IUPAC in the chemical community, industry,
and government institutions. Prof. Gilbert 's remarks were followed
by presentations of 9 plenary speakers, 19 invited speakers, and
20 others. Thirty high-quality posters were presented in a very
well attended (especially by students) 2hour poster session.
Some conference topics especially worthy of mention include starch
hydrocolloids; self cross-linking of films from functionalized latexes;
recent advances in macromolecular engineering using ROMP and self-assembling
procedures; mechanisms of formation of iso-and syndiotactic poly(1,3
diene)s; atomtransfer radical polymerization of styrene and butyl
acrylate; chain transfer to polymer in emulsion co-polymerization;
free volume and transport properties of heterogeneous poly(ethylene
cooctene)s; early recognition of oxidative degradation in polymers
by chem-iluminescence; analytical techniques for polymers with complex
architecture; characterization of macromolecules, micro-gels, and
nano-particles by analytical ultra-centrifugation; characterization
of complex polyolefins; chemical composition and molecular weight
dependence; challenges in the application and design of gel permeation
chromatography (GPC)/size exclusion chromatography (SEC) separation
media; polyelectrolytes and their characterization; role of micro-mechanisms
to improve the mechanical properties of polymers; full characterization
of complex polymers and oligomers by different chromatographic techniques;
characterization of acid-base properties of polymers and other materials;
and a solution to the plastic shopping bag visual pollution problem.
The conference banquet at Boschendal Restaurant, Groot Drakenstein,
was greatly enjoyed by everybody who attended it. It embodied South
African cuisine, wines of the area, and good music in a wine-farm
atmosphere, in an area where up to 40 farms are available for touring
and tasting.
A virtual teaching encyclopedia CDROM 2001 (PolymerED), consisting
of all abstracts and UNESCO School lectures and IUPAC Conference
talks, is being created. Such an encyclopedia is an excellent tool
for teaching and expanding course notes and will be made available
to all speakers at the UNESCO School and IUPAC Conference 2001.
It is also available for ordering for USD 50 a copy through the
UNESCO Associated Centre 's Web site: <http://www.sun.ac.za/unesco.unesco.htm/>.
It will be placed in an abridged form on the web site after approval
by each of the contributors. The 5th Annual UNESCO School (2-3 February
2002) and IUPAC Conference (4-6 February 2002) will also take place
in Stellenbosch, South Africa.
Prof. R. D. Sanderson (Conference Chairman)
and Aneli Fourie (Conference Secretary)
UNESCO Associated Centre for Macromolecules and Materials
University of Stellenbosch
Private Bag X1
Matieland 7602, South Africa
Prof. Harald Pasch (Conference Cochairman)
Darmstadt Kunststoff Institute
Schlossgartenstrasse 6
Darmstadt 64289, Germany