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Entropy-Driven Segregation and Its Competition with Crystal Nucleation in the Binary Blends of Stretched and Free
Liyun Zha1, Miaomiao Zhang1, Liangbin Li2
1School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, State Key Lab of Coordination Chemistry, Nanjing University , Nanjing 210023, China.
Abstract:
Enhancing the dynamic asymmetry between liquid-like and solid-like components leads to spontaneous segregation. As a typical example, the binary blends of stretched and free guest polymers were investigated by our dynamic Monte Carlo simulations. The results evidenced an entropic driving force for the strain-induced segregation between two components, similar to that for Onsager's lyotropic liquid crystals. In addition, with the decrease of strain rates, its competition with strain-induced crystal nucleation results in variable compositions in crystal precursors. The scenario helps to settle down the controversial arguments on the flow-induced precursors of shish-kebab crystallites in the melt.
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