The commercial use of polymers in plastics, elastomers, coatings and adhesives almost always involves the use of additives to enhance their properties. Thousands of years natural polymers have been blended with naturally occurring fillers, fibers and many other substances. In this century, the development of synthetic polymers has led to the development of high performance polymer composites. This volume is the only text describing origin and use of additives and their function in polymeric composites. A panel of outstanding specialists in the field of additives have placed this in a historic perspective. Apart from this, up-to-date information on all fillers, reinforcing agents, stabilizers, plasticizers, flame retardants, accelerators, etc. can be found in the volume.