Influence of filler particle and clusters on phase separation in binary polymer blends
- Avadh B.
- Turab
Polymer materials are rarely used in their pure form in applications. They are often filled with additives that improve their processability and mechanical or electrical properties. An understanding of the polymer-filler interaction and the ramifications for the properties of filled polymer blends is a matter of significant practical interest. Phase separation plays an important role in determining the morphology and properties of filled polymer composites, which usually are a blend of various macromolecular fluids, and additive particles. Despite the wide application of these blends, the development and the stability of the phase separating morphology are not fully understood. In particular, the interference of the filler induced composition waves remains unexplored. The presence of a surface induces a composition wave, which consists of stripes parallel to the surface and only exists close to the surface. The morphologies in the bulk take form of the characteristic spinodal decomposition patterns, i.e. the convoluted stripes. This surface directed phase separation has been studied both theoretically and experimentally. Recent numerical results show that an immobile spherical filler particle introduces transient target patterns in two-dimensional polymer thin films, and experimental results have confirmed the observations. The authors report simulation results of the effect of filler geometry on phase separation morphology, focusing on the interference of the composition waves on the stability of two-dimensional polymer blends (polymer thin films).
- Research Organization:
- Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL), Los Alamos, NM (United States)
- Sponsoring Organization:
- USDOE
- OSTI ID:
- 975107
- Report Number(s):
- LA-UR-01-0218; LA-UR-01-218; TRN: US201008%%79
- Resource Relation:
- Journal Volume: 661; Conference: Submitted to: Filled and Nanocomposite Polymer Materials proceedings of MRS 2000 Fall Meeting.
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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