Frontal polymerization is a method of manufacturing polymers via a self-propagating reaction wave. A mathematical model that describes thiol-ene frontal polymerization is presented and studied, both numerically and analytically. Spatio-temporal profiles of the temperature and concentrations of the reactants as well as the propagation velocity of the wave are determined. Conditions for existence of polymerization fronts are discussed. (c) 2005 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.