Abstract
Self-assembly plays a fundamental role to determine thermodynamic properties of polymer systems, e.g., resulting in the formation of dynamically cross-linked networks with varied elasticity. However, the working principle of chemo-mechanical coupling between the self-assembly and elasticity of polymers is complex and has not been well understood. In this study, a non-Euclidean geometry model incorporating thermodynamics of microphase separation is proposed to understand the chemo-mechanical coupling in self-assembled triblock polymers. The thermodynamic separation of microphases, which is resulted from the self-assembly of polymeric molecules, is formulated using a non-Euclidean geometry equation, of which the geometrical parameters are applied to characterize the topologies of self-assembled and cross-linked networks. The non-Euclidean geometry model is further employed to describe chemo-mechanical coupling between the self-assembled network and dynamic elasticity of the triblock polymers, based on the rubber elasticity theory. Effectiveness of the proposed model is verified using both finite-element analysis and experimental results reported in literature. This study provides a new geometrical approach to understand the mechanochemistry and thermodynamics of self-assembled block polymers.
Original language | English |
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Article number | 125094 |
Number of pages | 10 |
Journal | Polymer |
Volume | 254 |
Early online date | 23 Jun 2022 |
DOIs | |
Publication status | Published - 21 Jul 2022 |
Keywords
- hydrogel
- self-assembled
- Non-Euclidean geometry