A Review on Polyphosphazenes: Structure, Synthesis and New Applications

To date, by development of inorganic polymer technology and the use of these materials in electronics industry, medical, aerospace, military and other fields, the researchers have shown a growing interest in the synthesis of novel inorganic polymers having specific physical, chemical and electrical properties in their laboratories and industry research and development centers. Polyphosphazenes are one of the most wide-ranging groups of inorganic polymer families, until nowat least seven hundred variations of these polymers have been synthesized. These polymers with unique properties such as self-extinguishing, hydrophobicity, and biocompatibility have attracted the attention of many researchers in polymer science. All these unique properties are related to the main chain of polyphosphazene which has two side groups in each repeating unit; that they can be altered with a wide range of diverse organic compounds simply to indicate various properties. This study aims to contribute to this growing area of research by outlining the structure, synthesis methods and applications of polyphosphazenes.