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RESEARCH PRODUCT
Connectivity percolation in suspensions of hard platelets
Martin OettelMartin OettelTanja SchillingManeesh Mathewsubject
Blood PlateletsModels MolecularMaterials scienceMonte Carlo method: Physics [G04] [Physical chemical mathematical & earth Sciences]FOS: Physical sciencesNanotechnologyCondensed Matter - Soft Condensed MatterSuspensionsHardnessAnimalsHumansComputer SimulationColloidsAnisotropyCondensed Matter - Statistical MechanicsComplex fluidCondensed matter physicsStatistical Mechanics (cond-mat.stat-mech)Models CardiovascularPercolation thresholdThermal conductionAspect ratio (image)Directed percolation: Physique [G04] [Physique chimie mathématiques & sciences de la terre]Models ChemicalPercolationSoft Condensed Matter (cond-mat.soft)Rheologydescription
We present a study on connectivity percolation in suspensions of hard platelets by means of Monte Carlo simulation. We interpret our results using a contact-volume argument based on an effective single--particle cell model. It is commonly assumed that the percolation threshold of anisotropic objects scales as their inverse aspect ratio. While this rule has been shown to hold for rod-like particles, we find that for hard plate-like particles the percolation threshold is non-monotonic in the aspect ratio. It exhibits a shallow minimum at intermediate aspect ratios and then saturates to a constant value. This effect is caused by the isotropic-nematic transition pre-empting the percolation transition. Hence the common strategy to use highly anisotropic, conductive particles as fillers in composite materials in order to produce conduction at low filler concentration is expected to fail for plate-like fillers such as graphene and graphite nanoplatelets.
| year | journal | country | edition | language |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2012-04-13 |