Term: polyelectrolyte
https://doi.org/10.1351/goldbook.P04728

Definition:
Polymer composed of macromolecules in which a substantial portion of the constitutional units contains ionic or ionizable groups, or both.

Notes:
0) The terms polyelectrolyte, polymer electrolyte, and polymeric electrolyte should not be confused with the term @ST07227@.
1) Polyelectrolytes can be either synthetic or natural. @N04245@, @P04898@, teichoic acids, some @P04749@, and some @P04752@ are examples of natural polyelectrolytes.

Related Terms:
1) solid polymer electrolyte (http://doi.org/10.1351/goldbook.ST07227).
2) nucleic acids (http://doi.org/10.1351/goldbook.N04245).
3) proteins (http://doi.org/10.1351/goldbook.P04898).
4) polypeptides (http://doi.org/10.1351/goldbook.P04749).
5) polysaccharides (http://doi.org/10.1351/goldbook.P04752).

Source: PAC, 2006, 78, 2067. 'Terminology of polymers containing ionizable or ionic groups and of polymers containing ions (IUPAC Recommendations 2006)' on page 2072 (https://doi.org/10.1351/pac200678112067)

Citation: 'polyelectrolyte' in IUPAC Compendium of Chemical Terminology, 5th ed. International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry; 2025. Online version 5.0.0, 2025. https://doi.org/10.1351/goldbook.P04728

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