1. Interfacial layering in a three-component polymer system
- Author
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Aradian, A., Saulnier, F., Raphael, E., and de Gennes, P. -G.
- Subjects
Condensed Matter - Soft Condensed Matter ,Condensed Matter - Materials Science - Abstract
We study theoretically the temporal evolution and the spatial structure of the interface between two polymer melts involving three different species (A, A* and B). The first melt is composed of two different polymer species A and A* which are fairly indifferent to one another (Flory parameter chi_AA* ~ 0). The second melt is made of a pure polymer B which is strongly attracted to species A (chi_AB < 0) but strongly repelled by species A* (chi_A*B > 0). We then show that, due to these contradictory tendencies, interesting properties arise during the evolution of the interface after the melts are put into contact: as diffusion proceeds, the interface structures into several adjacent "compartments", or layers, of differing chemical compositions, and in addition, the central mixing layer grows in a very asymmetric fashion. Such unusual behaviour might lead to interesting mechanical properties, and demonstrates on a specific case the potential richness of multi-component polymer interfaces (as compared to conventional two-component interfaces) for various applications., Comment: Revised version, to appear in Macromolecules
- Published
- 2003
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