Related Experiment Video
Updated: Dec 13, 2025
10:56
Confocal Imaging of Confined Quiescent and Flowing Colloid-polymer Mixtures
Published on: May 20, 2014
12.4K
Gelation Impairs Phase Separation and Small Molecule Migration in Polymer Mixtures
Biswaroop Mukherjee1, Buddhapriya Chakrabarti1
1Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Sheffield, Sheffield S3 7RH, UK.
Polymers
|July 26, 2020
Summary
Surface migration in polymer mixtures, a cause of formulation degradation, is reduced in gels due to network elasticity. This study uses multiscale simulations to analyze phase separation and surface segregation in oligomer-polymer and oligomer-gel systems.
Area of Science:
- Materials Science
- Polymer Science
- Computational Chemistry
Background:
- Surface segregation of low molecular weight components in polymeric mixtures is a common issue leading to formulation degradation.
- Understanding and controlling this phenomenon is crucial for developing stable industrial products.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate simultaneous phase separation and surface migration in oligomer-polymer (OP) and oligomer-gel (OG) systems.
- To quantify the impact of network elasticity in gels on surface migration and phase separation dynamics.
- To provide insights for the rational design of polymer and gel-oligomer mixtures with tailored surface properties.
Main Methods:
- Utilized coarse-grained molecular dynamics (CGMD) and mesoscale hydrodynamics (MH) simulations.
- Computed equilibrium and time-varying oligomer density profiles and wetting layer thickness.
- Employed multiscale modeling to cover a wide range of length and time scales.
Main Results:
- Demonstrated that network elasticity in gel-oligomer systems significantly reduces surface migration.
- Observed that phase separation processes are considerably slowed in gels, modifying the Lifshitz-Slyozov-Wagner (LSW) law.
- Provided quantitative descriptions of oligomer migration and wetting layer formation.
Conclusions:
- Network elasticity in gels offers a mechanism to mitigate detrimental surface segregation in polymer mixtures.
- Multiscale simulations are effective tools for predicting surface segregation behavior in complex polymer systems.
- The findings enable the rational design of materials with controlled surface characteristics for improved stability and performance.
More Related Videos
12:07Fabricating Degradable Thermoresponsive Hydrogels on Multiple Length Scales via Reactive Extrusion, Microfluidics, Self-assembly, and Electrospinning
Published on: April 16, 2018
13.9K
11:34Controlled Synthesis and Fluorescence Tracking of Highly Uniform PolyN-isopropylacrylamide Microgels
Published on: September 8, 2016
10.7K
Related Concept Videos
01:21Polymer Classification: Crystallinity
3.6K
Unlike ionic or small covalent molecules, polymers do not form crystalline solids due to the diffusion limitations of their long-chain structures. However, polymers contain microscopic crystalline domains separated by amorphous domains.
Crystalline domains are the regions where polymer chains are aligned in an orderly manner and held together in proximity by intermolecular forces. For example, chains in the crystalline domains of polyethylene and nylon are bound together by van der Waals...
Crystalline domains are the regions where polymer chains are aligned in an orderly manner and held together in proximity by intermolecular forces. For example, chains in the crystalline domains of polyethylene and nylon are bound together by van der Waals...
3.6K
01:08Molecular Weight of Step-Growth Polymers
2.7K
Step growth polymerization involves bi or multifunctional monomers. Bifunctional monomers react to form linear step growth polymers, whereas multifunctional monomers react to form non-linear or branched polymers.
As the step-growth polymerization involves step-wise condensation of monomers, the molecular weight also builds up eventually. Consequently, high molecular weight polymers are obtained at the late stages of the polymerization, where 99% of monomers have been consumed.
The extent of the...
As the step-growth polymerization involves step-wise condensation of monomers, the molecular weight also builds up eventually. Consequently, high molecular weight polymers are obtained at the late stages of the polymerization, where 99% of monomers have been consumed.
The extent of the...
2.7K
02:21Chemical and Solubility Equilibria
4.7K
The free energy change associated with dissolving a solute in a liter of solvent is called the free energy of a solution, ΔGsolution. The overall ΔGsolution is expressed as the balance of ΔGinteraction against the always-favorable free-energy of mixing, ΔGmixing. Solution formation is favorable if ΔGsolution is less than zero, whereas it is unfavorable if ΔGsolution is greater than zero. In short, for a solution to form and complete dissolution to take place,...
4.7K
00:57Cationic Chain-Growth Polymerization: Mechanism
2.7K
The cationic polymerization mechanism consists of three steps: initiation, propagation, and termination. In the initiation step of the polymerization process, the π bond of a monomer gets protonated by the Lewis acid catalyst, which is formed from boron trifluoride and water. The protonation of the π bond generates a carbocation stabilized by the electron‐donating group. In the propagation step, the π bond of the second monomer acts as a nucleophile and attacks the...
2.7K
02:35DNA Agarose Gel Electrophoresis
110.7K
Agarose gel electrophoresis is a laboratory technique commonly used to separate DNA fragments by size. However, it can also be used to isolate and purify DNA fragments using a gel extraction protocol.
Gel extraction follows five major steps: running gel electrophoresis to separate fragments, isolating the individual bands, extracting DNA from those bands, and removing the dye and salts from the extracted mixture to obtain pure DNA.
In cloning experiments, both the insert and vector DNA...
Gel extraction follows five major steps: running gel electrophoresis to separate fragments, isolating the individual bands, extracting DNA from those bands, and removing the dye and salts from the extracted mixture to obtain pure DNA.
In cloning experiments, both the insert and vector DNA...
110.7K
01:03Step-Growth Polymerization: Overview
4.2K
Step-growth or condensation polymerization is a stepwise reaction of bi or multifunctional monomers to form long-chain polymers. As all the monomers are reactive, most of the monomers are consumed at the early stages of the reaction to form small chains of reactive oligomers, which then combine to form long polymer chains in the late stages. Hence, the reaction has to proceed for a long time to achieve high molecular weight polymers.
Many natural and synthetic polymers are produced by...
Many natural and synthetic polymers are produced by...
4.2K