Search results for "Polymer blend"

Treatment of poly(styrene-co-methacrylic acid)/poly(4-vinylpyridine) blends in solution under liquid–liquid phase-separation conditions. A new method…

2006

Phase diagrams are contributed for polymer mixture systems in solution. One polymer has proton-acceptor character and the other has growing proton-donor nature, which is reflected in the phase diagrams. Usually, these diagrams are obtained from size-exclusion chromatographic (SEC) measurements. A totally novel application, which is exposed in this report, is the construction of the phase diagram from the viscometric experiments of polymer mixtures. The evaluated binodal or cloud-point isotherms so built agree well with those from SEC. The results indicate an augmentation in the dimensions of donor polymer B, in the presence of acceptor polymer C, intensifying with the concentration of C, wh…

‘Intrinsic’ profiles and capillary waves at interfaces between coexisting phases in polymer blends

2001

Abstract Lateral fluctuations in the local position of the center of the interface between coexisting phases in unmixed polymer blends lead to a broadening of interfacial widths; comparing self-consistent field predictions for the ‘intrinsic’ profile to simulations (or experiments), this ‘capillary wave’ broadening needs consideration. This problem has been studied by extensive Monte Carlo simulations of the bond fluctuation model for symmetrical polymer mixtures, both for free interfaces (between bulk phases) and for confined interfaces (in thin films between parallel walls). While the capillary wave predictions at large length scales are confirmed, the extraction of the ‘intrinsic’ profil…

Interfaces between coexisting phases of polymer mixtures: Comparison between Monte Carlo simulations and theoretical predictions

1997

Large scale Monte Carlo investigations of the interface between A-rich and B-rich phases of symmetric binary (AB) polymer mixtures are presented, using the bond fluctuation model of flexible chains with NA=NB=N=32 effective monomers. The temperature range studied, 0.144<T/Tc0.759, includes both the strong and the weak segregation limit. Interfacial free energy and interfacial structure are studied, and compared to predictions based on the selfconsistent field theory. Also the broadening of the interfacial width due to capillary waves is considered, and finite size effects due to the confinement of interfaces in thin films of polymer blends are discussed.

Interfacial tension between polymer-containing liquids - Predictability and influences of additives

1999

The first part of the contribution deals with the interfacial tension, σ, of phase-separated polymer solutions in single or mixed solvents and of binary polymer blends as a function of the relative distance to the critical temperature of the system, special attention being paid to the possibilities of theoretical prediction. Two methods are discussed in more detail. One is based on a realistic description of the Gibbs energy of mixing as a function of composition, the second correlates σ with the length of the measured tie line. The second part is devoted to another aspect, namely the effects of additives on the interfacial tension between the coexisting phases of demixed polymer solutions …

The effect of pressure on the liquid–liquid phase equilibrium of two polydisperse polyalkylsiloxane blends

2002

The effect of pressure-induced immiscibility in polymer blends is investigated by experimental and theoretical methods. Experimental data of cloud point curves and critical points are obtained by turbidity measurements. The chosen system is a mixture of polydimethylsiloxane and polyhexylmethylsiloxane which is one of the very few polymer blends exhibiting pressure-induced immiscibility. This unusual behaviour is related to a critical temperature minimum of the critical curve and cloud point isopleths at positive pressure in the temperature–pressure diagram. The effect of the chain length on the critical temperature minimum is investigated here based on theoretical models. The effect of diff…

PHEA‐PLLA: A New Polymer Blend For Tissue Engineering Applications

2011

One of most important features that a material should have in order to be utilized for tissue engineering applications is its biocompatibility and its chemical surface. These properties are required for a high degree of cell adhesion on the scaffold. Poly‐L‐lactid acid (PLLA) is a biocompatible synthetic polymer approved by the Food and Drug Administration for human clinical applications. It has been largely employed, in the last years, as a constituent of surgical and implantable devices. PHEA is a biocompatible water‐soluble synthetic polymer, with a protein‐like structure, whose use as a drug carrier and as starting material for many other biomedical and pharmaceutical applications has b…

1994

Polymer blends can undergo, during processing, degradation phenomena because of the presence of both temperature and mechanical stresses. With respect to pure homogeneous polymers, the degradation of polymer blends shows distinct features because of the possible interaction between the different chemical species. These interaction can give rise to both a faster degradation or to the formation of copolymers which act as stabilizing agents. This latter phenomena is particularly important in the processing of condensation polymers

1984

Provided a polymer is soluble, i. e., molecularly dispersed in another polymer irrespective of the molecular weight of the components, the solution is exothermic. By increasing the temperature two effects, both unfavourable to mixing become larger: (i) the excess entropy of mixing caused by contact interaction and (ii) the total effect from the difference of the free volumes of the pure components. So, an upper miscibility gap occurs. The thermodynamic properties of the mixture cannot be derived from the properties of the pure components. They can be described by the corresponding states theory of Prigogine, Flory, and Patterson with suitable values for the contact energy and contact entrop…

Effect of compatibilization on the photo-oxidation behaviour of polyethylene/polyamide 6 blends and their nanocomposites

2015

Abstract Polymer based nanocomposites are increasingly attracting interest from academia and industry, and the use of polymer blends as matrices greatly increase their potential field of application. In order to improve their characteristics, the use of compatibilizers acting on the blend components is mandatory. However, this also leads to rising concerns regarding the behaviour of polymer blend based nanocomposites upon being subjected to photo-oxidative degradation. It is known that morphology can deeply influence the photo-oxidative behaviour, and this can be therefore deeply influenced by the blend components and by the use of compatibilizers. In this work, polymer blend nanocomposites…

Degradation Behavior of Nanocomposite Polymer Blends

2014

The usefulness of any material, including nanocomposite polymer blends, depends on its degradability and durability. Thus, this chapter reviews the status of the research on degradation of nanocomposite polymer blends and, in particular, on clay-nanocomposite polymer blends, paying particular attention to both the role of the filler and the role of the blend morphology and composition. The results of recent research indicate that the clay has two opposing effects on the thermal stability of a nanocomposite polymer blend: (1) a promoter effect of the polymer matrix degradation, which decreases the thermal stability, and (2) a barrier effect, which improves the thermal stability. Moreover, th…