Calculation of ternary polymer solution phase diagram via compressible lattice fluid model extended to specific interactions

Ternary polymer solutions are currently employed for the production of porous structures (e.g. membranes and scaffolds for tissue engineering) via liquid-liquid phase separation techniques. The relation between processing conditions and thermodynamic features of the considered polymeric system determines the morphology of the as-prepared membrane. Therefore, in order to achieve a better control on a porous structure, a deep characterization of the phase behavior of a polymer solution is needed. The experimental derivation of phase diagrams is highly cost and time consuming, thus usually the cloud point curves of the system are directly measured. In this work, the compressible lattice fluid …