Nuclear magnetic relaxation in polymer melts and solutions

Nuclear magnetic relaxation times have been studied in some polymer liquids and solutions. The nonexponential decay of the transverse magnetization has been ascribed to the distribution of molecular weights. The use of such measurements as a means of determining average molecular weights and distributions is discussed. A preliminary application of this use is made for polyethylene. The implications of nuclear magnetic relaxation measurements are discussed in terms of molecular motional processes of the polymer chains.