Rheological Tuning of Entangled Polymer Networks by Transient Cross-links

The remarkable functionalities of transiently cross-linked, biopolymer networks are increasingly becoming translated into synthetic materials for biomedical and materials science applications. Various computational and theoretical models, representing different transient cross-linking mechanisms, have been proposed to mimic biological and synthetic polymer networks, and to interpret experimental measurements of rheological, transport, and self-repair properties. Herein, we employ molecular dynamics simulations of a baseline entangled polymer melt coupled with parametrized affinities for binding and unbinding of transient cross-links (CLs). From these assumptions alone, we determine the emergent CL mean density and fluctuations, and the induced rheology, across the 2-parameter space of binding and unbinding affinities for a moderately long chain, entangled the polymer melt. For sufficiently weak (short-lived) CLs, nonmonotonicity emerges with respect to the affinity to form CLs: the stress relaxation, viscous, and elastic moduli all shift above the baseline if CLs form rapidly, reverse below the baseline as CLs form slowly, and reverse again, recovering the baseline as CLs form very slowly. For sufficiently strong (long-lived) CLs and sufficiently fast CL formation, a dramatic rise emerges in the viscous and elastic moduli at all frequencies, more prominently in the elastic moduli at medium to high frequencies, inducing a sol-gel transition. These results are placed in context with the experimental and theoretical literature on transient polymer networks.