Book excerpt: Many authors use abbreviations, acronyms, technical nomenclature and symbols in their publications. The use of such abbreviations without definitions can be very frustrating for the reader. This lexicon is designed to overcome such problems. This unique reference work is the world's most comprehensive list of abbreviations and acronyms relating to the plastics and rubber industries. The 5000+ references have been compiled from the journals, books, trade magazines, reports, data sheets and directories covering rubber and plastics, which are used to create abstracts for the Rapra Polymer Library database.