skip to main content
OSTI.GOV title logo U.S. Department of Energy
Office of Scientific and Technical Information

Title: A multiscale approach to model hydrogen bonding: The case of polyamide

Journal Article · · Journal of Chemical Physics
DOI:https://doi.org/10.1063/1.4922445· OSTI ID:22415980
 [1]
  1. School of Chemical Engineering and Analytical Science, University of Manchester, Manchester M13 9PL (United Kingdom)

We present a simple multiscale model for polymer chains in which it is possible to selectively remove degrees of freedom. The model integrates all-atom and coarse-grained potentials in a simple and systematic way and allows a fast sampling of the complex conformational energy surface typical of polymers whilst maintaining a realistic description of selected atomistic interactions. In particular, we show that it is possible to simultaneously reproduce the structure of highly directional non-bonded interactions such as hydrogen bonds and efficiently explore the large number of conformations accessible to the polymer chain. We apply the method to a melt of polyamide removing from the model only the degrees of freedom associated to the aliphatic segments and keeping at atomistic resolution the amide groups involved in the formation of the hydrogen bonds. The results show that the multiscale model produces structural properties that are comparable with the fully atomistic model despite being five times faster to simulate.

OSTI ID:
22415980
Journal Information:
Journal of Chemical Physics, Vol. 142, Issue 22; Other Information: (c) 2015 AIP Publishing LLC; Country of input: International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA); ISSN 0021-9606
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English