Search results for "Nodal"
showing 10 items of 264 documents
Phase separation versus wetting: A mean field theory for symmetrical polymer mixtures confined between selectively attractive walls
1996
Partially compatible symmetrical (N A # N B = N) binary mixtures of linear flexible polymers (A, B) are considered in the presence of two equivalent walls a distance D apart, assuming that both walls preferentially adsorb the same component. Using a Flory-Huggins type mean field approach analogous to previous work studying wetting phenomena in the semi-infinite version of this model, where D → ∞, it is shown that a single phase transition occurs in this thin film geometry, namely a phase separation between an A-rich and a B-rich phase (both phases include the bulk of the film). The coexistence curve is shifted to smaller values of the inverse Flory-Huggins parameter x -1 with decreasing D, …
Exponential Relaxation out of Nonequilibrium
1989
Simulation results are presented for a quench from a disordered state to a state below the coexistence curve. The model which we consider is the Ising model but with the dynamics governed by the Swendsen-Wang transition probabilities. We show that the resulting domain growth has an exponential instead of a power law behaviour and that the system is non-self-averaging while in nonequilibrium. The simulations were carried out on a parallel computer with up to 128 processors.
Growth of Domains and Scaling in the Late Stages of Phase Separation and Diffusion-Controlled Ordering Phenomena
1991
These lectures consider the kinetics of phase changes, induced by a sudden change of external thermodynamic parameters. E.g., we treat a system with a second-order transition at a critical temperature Tc (Fig. 1, left part). For T0 > Tc the system is disordered, while for T < Tc there is an order parameter ± ψ (implying one-component orderings, e.g., an Ising model; later we discuss generalizations). We consider a “quenching experiment”: The system is brought from an initially disordered state at T0 to a state at T where in equilibrium the system should be orderedl. Since no sign of ψ is preferred, the system starts forming locally ordered regions of either sign, separated by domain walls. …
Liquid-vapour phase behaviour of a symmetrical binary fluid mixture
1998
Using Monte-Carlo simulation and mean field calculations, we study the liquid-vapour phase diagram of a square well binary fluid mixture as a function of a parameter $\delta$ measuring the relative strength of interactions between particles of dissimilar and similar species. The results reveal a rich variety of liquid-vapour coexistence behaviour as $\delta$ is tuned. Specifically, we uncover critical end point behaviour, a triple point involving a vapour and two liquids of different density, and tricritical behaviour. For a certain range of $\delta$, the mean field calculations also predict a `hidden' (metastable) liquid-vapour binodal.
The droplet evaporation/condensation transition in a finite volume
2003
A fluid in the NVT ensemble at T less than the critical temperature T_c and rho = N/V somewhat in excess of rho_coex (density of the saturated gas in the gas-liquid transition) is considered. For V->infinity, a macroscopic liquid droplet coexists with surrounding saturated gas according to the lever rule. For finite V, droplets can only exist if they exceed a minimum size. A (rounded) first order transition of the system occurs when the droplet evaporates into the supersaturated gas.Simulation evidence for this transition is given for a Lennard-Jones model and interpreted by a phenomenological theory. At the transition, the chemical potential difference mu_t-mu_coex scales like L^(-d/(d+…
Sedimentation of dissolved macromolecules in the vicinity of the consolute point 1. Strictly binary systems and kinetic considerations
1986
This paper analyzes the effect of gravity on polymer solutions near the consolute point. Calculations are carried out for monodisperse polystyrene in cyclohexane using the Flory-Huggins expression with a concentration-dependent interaction parameter for the free energy of mixing. Depending on molecular weight and distance to the demixing temperature, the influence of gravity leads to non-negligible gradients of the volume fraction in the one-phase region as well as in the two-phase region. In particular, the effect of gravity on the measurement of the coexistence curve in a finite sample is calculated explicitly.
Calculation of phase diagrams not requiring the derivatives of the Gibbs energy demonstrated for a mixture of two homopolymers with the corresponding…
1995
A method is presented which allows the calculation of phase diagrams (spinodal, binodal and tie lines) on the basis of the Gibbs energy of mixing ΔG. No derivatives of ΔG with respect to the composition variables are required. This method is particularly useful in cases where the composition dependence of ΔG is very complex and no analytical representation of the derivatives can be given. The method is applied to a ternary mixture of two homopolymers with a copolymer consisting of the same monomers. The sequence distribution of the copolymer is kept constant between random and purely alternating, and phase diagrams are calculated for different chemical compositions of the copolymer. The com…
Thermodynamics of a polymer blend solution system studied by gel permeation chromatography and viscosity
1999
Binary and ternary interaction parameters and their derivatives have been calculated with the Flory-Huggins formalism developed for a ternary polymer system. The equilibrium compositions of the ternary system tetrahydrofuran/polybutadiene/polystyrene that forms two phases in equilibrium at 25°C have been used to solve the binodal equations. With this set of parameters, the viscosimetric interaction parameters have been computed. For the sake of comparison, the experimental viscosimetric parameter has been determined from intrinsic viscosity data of a polymer (3) in a "binary solvent" (solvent + polymer (2)). It has been clearly shown that composition-dependent parameters are necessary to re…
Molecular Dynamics simulation of evaporation processes of fluid bridges confined in slit-like pore
2009
A simple fluid, described by point-like particles interacting via the Lennard-Jones potential, is considered under confinement in a slit geometry between two walls at distance Lz apart for densities inside the vapor-liquid coexistence curve. Equilibrium then requires the coexistence of a liquid "bridge" between the two walls, and vapor in the remaining pore volume. We study this equilibrium for several choices of the wall-fluid interaction (corresponding to the full range from complete wetting to complete drying, for a macroscopically thick film), and consider also the kinetics of state changes in such a system. In particular, we study how this equilibrium is established by diffusion proces…
Demixing time and temperature influence on porosity and interconnection of PLLA scaffolds prepared via TIPS
2009
Scaffolds suitable for tissue engineering applications were prepared by Thermally Induced Phase Separation (TIPS) starting from a ternary solution PLLA/ dioxane/water. The experimental protocol consisted of three consecutive steps, a first quench from the homogeneous solution to an appropriate demixing temperature (within the binodal region), a liquid-liquid demixing stage for a given time and a final quench from the demixing temperature to a low temperature (within the spinodal region). A large variety of morphologies, in terms of average pore size and interconnection were obtained upon modifying the demixing time and temperature, owing to the interplay of nucleation and growth processes d…