1
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Patil S, Mbonu C, Chou T, Li R, Wu D, Akcora P, Cheng S. Dynamics of poly(methyl acrylate)/poly(methyl methacrylate)-grafted-Fe 3O 4 nanocomposites. SOFT MATTER 2024; 20:7970-7982. [PMID: 39348039 DOI: 10.1039/d4sm00731j] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/01/2024]
Abstract
We investigated the dynamics of nanocomposites prepared through mixing poly(methyl methacrylate) grafted Fe3O4 nanoparticles (PMMA-g-Fe3O4) with poly(methyl acrylate) (PMA). A key feature here different from previous dynamics measurements of polymer nanocomposites is the different chemistry between the matrix polymer and the polymer grafts, which introduces chemical heterogeneity. Transmission electron microscopy shows clear evidence of nanoparticle clustering due to the poor miscibility between the bulk PMA and the bulk PMMA. At the same time, broadband dielectric spectroscopy measurements detect two leading relaxations, i.e. the α and α* processes, where the α process is associated with the bulk PMA and the α* process from the PMA interacting with the grafted PMMA in the nanoparticle clustering region. Interestingly, the characteristic time of α*, τα*, is slightly slower than that of the α, τα, at high temperatures, and exhibits near Arrhenius temperature dependence at low temperatures. As a result, τα* and τα cross each other in the activation plot upon cooling and τα* ≪ τα is observed at temperatures approaching the glass transition temperature of PMA. These observations suggest the presence of component dynamics and the dynamics confinement effect between PMA and PMMA in the nanoparticle clustering region, highlighting an active interaction between PMA and PMMA at the interface despite their poor miscibility. These results thus suggest new routes to control interface dynamics through immiscible polymer pairs.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shalin Patil
- Department of Chemical Engineering and Materials Science, Michigan State University, East Lansing, Michigan 48824, USA.
| | - Christopher Mbonu
- Department of Chemical Engineering and Materials Science, Stevens Institute of Technology, Hoboken, New Jersey 07030, USA.
| | - Tsengming Chou
- Department of Chemical Engineering and Materials Science, Stevens Institute of Technology, Hoboken, New Jersey 07030, USA.
| | - Ruhao Li
- Department of Chemical Engineering and Materials Science, Stevens Institute of Technology, Hoboken, New Jersey 07030, USA.
| | - Di Wu
- Department of Chemical Engineering and Materials Science, Stevens Institute of Technology, Hoboken, New Jersey 07030, USA.
| | - Pinar Akcora
- Department of Chemical Engineering and Materials Science, Stevens Institute of Technology, Hoboken, New Jersey 07030, USA.
| | - Shiwang Cheng
- Department of Chemical Engineering and Materials Science, Michigan State University, East Lansing, Michigan 48824, USA.
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2
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DARVISHI S, ŞENSES E. Polymer architecture effect on rheology and segmental dynamics in poly (methyl methacrylate)-silica nanocomposite melts. Turk J Chem 2023; 47:749-762. [PMID: 38174057 PMCID: PMC10760588 DOI: 10.55730/1300-0527.3576] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/29/2023] [Revised: 08/25/2023] [Accepted: 06/23/2023] [Indexed: 01/05/2024] Open
Abstract
Architecturally different polymer chains lead to fundamentally different rheological responses and internal dynamics, which can be utilized to rationalize advanced thermoplastic nanocomposites with tunable mechanical behavior. In this work, three model poly (methyl methacrylate) (PMMA) polymers with linear, bottlebrush, and star architectures with the same total molar mass were investigated in their neat form, and nanocomposites with well-dispersed silica nanoparticles using rheology and broadband dielectric spectroscopy (BDS). The master curves of the dynamic moduli obtained by time-temperature superposition (TTS) over the entire range from the Rouse regime to the terminal flow and a sequence of significantly different relaxation modes were observed for the samples with linear and branch chains. While linear chains form an entangled polymer network, the branched bottlebrush, and star chains show a viscoelastic response with no sign of rubbery entanglement plateau and a weak arm relaxation regime between Rouse and terminal flow, akin to other branched polymers. Moreover, branched chains showed a higher fragility index (m = 3.46 for the bottlebrush and 5.36 for the star) compared to linear chains (m = 3.29) due to dynamical heterogeneities induced by arm relaxation. The addition of nanoparticles affects only the terminal relaxation regime, where the whole chain motion is hindered by the attractive nanoparticles. The dynamics of the polymer segment were investigated by performing broadband dielectric spectroscopy (BDS) at a frequency range from 10-2 Hz to 107 Hz. The results revealed more than 10 times slower segmental relaxation for the star homopolymers and a slowdown in the α-relaxation process for all three architectures in their composite form. The dynamical slowdown in the composites is temperature dependent and more pronounced at low temperatures (leading to approximately equal to 80 times slower dynamics for nanocomposite with bottlebrush PMMA at 150 °C) due to prolonged relaxation of the interfacial polymer compared to the matrix chains. The results from this study have practical applications in fields such as gas separation and polymeric electrolyte membranes, where simultaneous improvement of segmental mobility and mechanical moduli is highly desired.
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Affiliation(s)
- Saeid DARVISHI
- Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering, Koç University, İstanbul,
Turkiye
| | - Erkan ŞENSES
- Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering, Koç University, İstanbul,
Turkiye
- Koç University Boron and Advanced Materials Application and Research Center (KUBAM), İstanbul,
Turkiye
- n2STAR-Koç University Nanofabrication and Nanocharacterization Center for Scientific and Technological Advanced Research, İstanbul,
Turkiye
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3
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Wu D, Narayanan S, Li R, Feng Y, Akcora P. The effect of dynamically heterogeneous interphases on the particle dynamics of polymer nanocomposites. SOFT MATTER 2023; 19:2764-2770. [PMID: 36988144 DOI: 10.1039/d2sm01617f] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/19/2023]
Abstract
The entanglements of dynamically asymmetric polymer layers influence relaxations of nanoparticles in polymer nanocomposites. In this work, the dynamics of polymer-adsorbed and polymer-grafted nanoparticles in a poly(methyl acrylate) matrix polymer was investigated using X-ray photon correlation spectroscopy (XPCS) to understand the role of chain rigidity and chemical heterogeneities in particle dynamics. Locations of dynamic heterogeneities close to nanoparticles and away from particle surfaces were examined with the comparison of adsorbed and grafted nanoparticles. Our results show that the chemical heterogeneities around dispersed nanoparticles transitioned the particle dynamics from Brownian diffusion into hyperdiffusion, and moreover, the high rigidity of chains in the chemically heterogeneous interfacial layers slowed down the particle dynamics. The hyperdiffusion measured both in grafted particles and adsorbed particles was attributed to the dense interfacial mixing of dynamically heterogeneous chains.
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Affiliation(s)
- Di Wu
- Department of Chemical Engineering and Materials Science, Stevens Institute of Technology, Hoboken, New Jersey 07030, USA.
| | - Suresh Narayanan
- Advanced Photon Source, Argonne National Laboratory, Lemont, Illinois 60439, USA
| | - Ruhao Li
- Department of Chemical Engineering and Materials Science, Stevens Institute of Technology, Hoboken, New Jersey 07030, USA.
| | - Yi Feng
- Department of Chemical Engineering and Materials Science, Stevens Institute of Technology, Hoboken, New Jersey 07030, USA.
| | - Pinar Akcora
- Department of Chemical Engineering and Materials Science, Stevens Institute of Technology, Hoboken, New Jersey 07030, USA.
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4
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Oh SM, Kim SY. Intensified Nonequilibrium Effect of Polymer Nanocomposites with Decreasing Nanoparticle Size. ACS APPLIED MATERIALS & INTERFACES 2023; 15:4527-4537. [PMID: 36629148 DOI: 10.1021/acsami.2c20156] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/17/2023]
Abstract
What are the most important and decisive parameters that determine the structure and the property of polymer nanocomposites (PNCs)? Previous studies answered that controlling the nanoparticle interface is critical, which can be achieved with a choice of a compatible nanoparticle, a proper surface modification, and a change in the polymer chain length. In addition to these parameters, the processing condition of PNCs has recently emerged as an influential parameter for controlling PNC properties, suggesting the existence of the nonequilibrium effect of PNCs. In this regard, we chose the solvent as a main change in the processing condition and investigated the initial solvent-driven nonequilibrium effect of PNCs with varied nanoparticle (NP) sizes. We found that the type of the initial solvent is indeed crucial in determining the ultimate properties of the PNCs, and this becomes more influential as the size of NPs decreases. The decreasing size of NPs causes a conformational change in the adsorbed polymers from tightly packed layers to loosely dangling chains. This results in much greater differences in NP microstructures and rheological properties of PNCs, indicating a stronger nonequilibrium effect with smaller NPs.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sol Mi Oh
- School of Energy and Chemical Engineering, Ulsan National Institute of Science and Technology (UNIST), 50 UNIST-gil, Ulsan44919, Republic of Korea
| | - So Youn Kim
- School of Chemical and Biological Engineering, Institute of Chemical Processes, Seoul National University, 1, Gwanak-ro, Gwanak-gu, Seoul08826, Republic of Korea
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5
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Venkatesh RB, Lee D. Interfacial Friction Controls the Motion of Confined Polymers in the Pores of Nanoparticle Packings. Macromolecules 2022. [DOI: 10.1021/acs.macromol.2c01282] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- R. Bharath Venkatesh
- Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19104, United States
| | - Daeyeon Lee
- Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19104, United States
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6
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Rheological properties of crosslinked unentangled and entangled Poly(methyl acrylate) nanocomposite networks. POLYMER 2022. [DOI: 10.1016/j.polymer.2022.125150] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/21/2022]
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7
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Senses E, Kitchens CL, Faraone A. Viscosity reduction in polymer nanocomposites: Insights from dynamic neutron and X‐ray scattering. JOURNAL OF POLYMER SCIENCE 2022. [DOI: 10.1002/pol.20210320] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/09/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Erkan Senses
- Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering Koc University Istanbul Turkey
| | - Christopher L. Kitchens
- Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering Clemson University Clemson South Carolina USA
| | - Antonio Faraone
- Center for Neutron Research National Institute of Standards and Technology Gaithersburg Maryland USA
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8
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Gong C, Weiblen D, Rende D, Akcora P, Ozisik R. Stability of particle dispersion and heterogeneous interfacial layers in polymer nanocomposites. POLYMER 2021. [DOI: 10.1016/j.polymer.2021.123813] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/27/2022]
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9
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Kushan E, Senses E. Thermoresponsive and Injectable Composite Hydrogels of Cellulose Nanocrystals and Pluronic F127. ACS APPLIED BIO MATERIALS 2021; 4:3507-3517. [PMID: 35014435 DOI: 10.1021/acsabm.1c00046] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/11/2023]
Abstract
Thermoresponsive amphiphilic Pluronic F127 triblock copolymer solutions have been widely investigated in smart biomaterial applications due to the proximity of its critical gel temperature to human body temperature. Meanwhile, cellulose nanocrystals (CNCs) have quickly become the focus of many drug delivery and tissue engineering applications due to their biocompatibility, abundance, ability to conjugate with drug molecules, and superior rheological properties. Herein, we investigate the phase behavior and thermo-rheological properties of the composite hydrogels containing cellulose nanocrystals (up to 5% by weight) and the temperature responsive Pluronic F127. Our results revealed an unprecedented role of CNC network formation on micellization and gelation behavior of the triblock copolymer. Linear and nonlinear rheological analysis suggest that at low and moderate nanocrystal loadings (1-3% by weight), the composite gel remarkably becomes softer and deformable compared to the neat Pluronic F127 gels. The softening effect results from the disruption of the close packed micelles by the rodlike CNCs. At high concentrations, however, the nanocrystals form their own network and the micelles are trapped within the CNC meshes. As a result, the original (neat F127) hard-gel modulus is recovered at 4 to 5% nanocrystal loading, yet the composite gel is much more deformable (and tougher) in the presence of the CNC network. Our temperature sweep experiments show that the CNC addition up to 3% does not change the rapid thermal gelation of the F127 solutions; therefore, these composites are suitable for smart drug delivery systems. On the other hand, at higher CNC concentrations, abrupt viscosity transition is not observed, rather the composite gels smoothly thicken with temperature in contrast to thermal thinning of the aqueous neat CNC. Thus, they can be used as smartly adaptive biolubricants and bioviscostatic materials.
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Affiliation(s)
- Eren Kushan
- Chemical and Biological Engineering, Koc University, Sariyer, Istanbul 34450, Turkey
| | - Erkan Senses
- Chemical and Biological Engineering, Koc University, Sariyer, Istanbul 34450, Turkey
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10
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Cui W, You W, Yu W. Mechanism of Mechanical Reinforcement for Weakly Attractive Nanocomposites in Glassy and Rubbery States. Macromolecules 2021. [DOI: 10.1021/acs.macromol.0c02156] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/19/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Wenzhi Cui
- Advanced Rheology Institute, Department of Polymer Science and Engineering, Frontiers Science Center for Transformative Molecules, State Key Laboratory for Metal Matrix Composite Materials, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai 200240, P. R. China
| | - Wei You
- Advanced Rheology Institute, Department of Polymer Science and Engineering, Frontiers Science Center for Transformative Molecules, State Key Laboratory for Metal Matrix Composite Materials, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai 200240, P. R. China
| | - Wei Yu
- Advanced Rheology Institute, Department of Polymer Science and Engineering, Frontiers Science Center for Transformative Molecules, State Key Laboratory for Metal Matrix Composite Materials, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai 200240, P. R. China
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11
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You W, Cui W, Yu W. Decoupling hydrodynamic and entanglement effects on the modulus reinforcement of grafted silica filled nanocomposites through Thermal and rheological features. POLYMER 2021. [DOI: 10.1016/j.polymer.2020.123323] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/12/2023]
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12
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Yang S, Akcora P. Deformation of Chemically Heterogeneous Interfacial Layers of Polymer Nanocomposites. ACS Macro Lett 2019; 8:1635-1641. [PMID: 35619398 DOI: 10.1021/acsmacrolett.9b00821] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/20/2022]
Abstract
Dynamics of entangled interfacial polymer layers around nanoparticles determine the linear rheological properties of polymer nanocomposites. In this study, the nonlinear elastic properties of nanocomposites are examined under large-amplitude oscillatory shear (LAOS) flow to reveal the effect of interfacial chemical heterogeneity on the deformation mechanism of polymer-grafted and polymer-adsorbed nanoparticle composites. Adsorbed-poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA) layers presented stronger interfacial stiffening and reinforcement than PMMA-grafted layers. Chemical heterogeneities of interfacial layers, provided by polymer-adsorbed and low graft density particles, deformed at smaller strains than the poly(ethylene oxide) (PEO) matrix. Interfaces of loosely bound PMMA and PEO exhibited stiffening at low strains due to the enhanced chain mixing and entanglements. These results demonstrate that chemical and dynamic heterogeneities in interfacial layers have significant importance in designing adaptive polymer nanocomposites for large shear deformation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Siyang Yang
- Department of Chemical Engineering & Materials Science, Stevens Institute of Technology, Hoboken, New Jersey 07030, United States
| | - Pinar Akcora
- Department of Chemical Engineering & Materials Science, Stevens Institute of Technology, Hoboken, New Jersey 07030, United States
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13
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Senses E, Narayanan S, Faraone A. Nanoscale Particle Motion Reveals Polymer Mobility Gradient in Nanocomposites. ACS Macro Lett 2019; 8:558-562. [PMID: 35619363 PMCID: PMC11132598 DOI: 10.1021/acsmacrolett.9b00176] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/19/2022]
Abstract
Polymer mobility near nanoparticle surfaces has been extensively discussed; however, direct experimental observation in the nanocomposite melts has been a difficult task. Here, by taking advantage of large dynamical asymmetry between the miscible matrix and surface-bound polymers, we highlighted their interphases and studied the resulting effect on the nanoparticle relaxation using X-ray photon correlation spectroscopy. The local mobility gradient is signified by an unprecedented increase in the relaxation time at length scales on the order of polymer radius of gyration. The effect is accompanied by a transition from simple diffusive to subdiffusive behavior in accord with viscous and entangled dynamics of polymers in the matrix and in the interphase, respectively. Our results demonstrate that the nanoparticle-induced polymer mobility changes in the interphases of nanocomposite melts can be extracted from the length-scale-dependent slow particle motion.
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Affiliation(s)
- Erkan Senses
- Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering, Koç University, Istanbul 34450, Turkey
| | - Suresh Narayanan
- Advanced Photon Source, Argonne National Laboratory, Argonne, Illinois 60439, United States
| | - Antonio Faraone
- NIST Center for Neutron Research, Gaithersburg, Maryland 20899, United States
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14
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Trazkovich AJ, Wendt MF, Hall LM. Effect of Copolymer Sequence on Local Viscoelastic Properties near a Nanoparticle. Macromolecules 2019. [DOI: 10.1021/acs.macromol.8b02136] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/08/2023]
Affiliation(s)
- Alex J. Trazkovich
- William G. Lowrie Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, The Ohio State University, 140 W 19th Ave., Columbus, Ohio 43210, United States
- Cooper Tire & Rubber Company, 701 Lima Ave., Findlay, Ohio 45840, United States
| | - Mitchell F. Wendt
- William G. Lowrie Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, The Ohio State University, 140 W 19th Ave., Columbus, Ohio 43210, United States
| | - Lisa M. Hall
- William G. Lowrie Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, The Ohio State University, 140 W 19th Ave., Columbus, Ohio 43210, United States
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15
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Xie R, Aplan MP, Caggiano NJ, Weisen AR, Su T, Müller C, Segad M, Colby RH, Gomez ED. Local Chain Alignment via Nematic Ordering Reduces Chain Entanglement in Conjugated Polymers. Macromolecules 2018. [DOI: 10.1021/acs.macromol.8b01840] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/07/2023]
Affiliation(s)
- Renxuan Xie
- Department of Chemical Engineering, The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, Pennsylvania 16802, United States
| | - Melissa P. Aplan
- Department of Chemical Engineering, The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, Pennsylvania 16802, United States
| | - Nicholas J. Caggiano
- Department of Chemical Engineering, The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, Pennsylvania 16802, United States
| | - Albree R. Weisen
- Department of Chemical Engineering, The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, Pennsylvania 16802, United States
| | - Tang Su
- Department of Materials Science and Engineering, The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, Pennsylvania 16802, United States
| | - Christian Müller
- Department of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Chalmers University of Technology, 41296 Göteborg, Sweden
| | - Mo Segad
- The Materials Research Institute, The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, Pennsylvania 16802, United States
| | - Ralph H. Colby
- Department of Chemical Engineering, The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, Pennsylvania 16802, United States
- Department of Materials Science and Engineering, The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, Pennsylvania 16802, United States
- The Materials Research Institute, The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, Pennsylvania 16802, United States
| | - Enrique D. Gomez
- Department of Chemical Engineering, The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, Pennsylvania 16802, United States
- Department of Materials Science and Engineering, The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, Pennsylvania 16802, United States
- The Materials Research Institute, The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, Pennsylvania 16802, United States
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16
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Yang S, Liu S, Narayanan S, Zhang C, Akcora P. Chemical heterogeneity in interfacial layers of polymer nanocomposites. SOFT MATTER 2018; 14:4784-4791. [PMID: 29808217 DOI: 10.1039/c8sm00663f] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/08/2023]
Abstract
It is well-known that particle-polymer interactions strongly control the adsorption and conformations of adsorbed chains. Interfacial layers around nanoparticles consisting of adsorbed and free matrix chains have been extensively studied to reveal their rheological contribution to the behavior of nanocomposites. This work focuses on how chemical heterogeneity of the interfacial layers around the particles governs the microscopic mechanical properties of polymer nanocomposites. Low glass-transition temperature composites consisting of poly(vinyl acetate) coated silica nanoparticles in poly(ethylene oxide) and poly(methyl acrylate) matrices, and of poly(methyl methacrylate) silica nanoparticles in a poly(methyl acrylate) matrix are examined using rheology and X-ray photon correlation spectroscopy. We demonstrate that miscibility between the adsorbed and matrix chains in the interfacial layers led to the observed unusual reinforcement. We suggest that packing of chains in the interfacial regions may also contribute to the reinforcement in the polymer nanocomposites. These features may be used in designing mechanically adaptive composites operating at varying temperature.
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Affiliation(s)
- Siyang Yang
- Department of Chemical Engineering & Materials Science, Stevens Institute of Technology, Hoboken, NJ 07030, USA.
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17
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18
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Senses E, Narayanan S, Mao Y, Faraone A. Nanoscale Particle Motion in Attractive Polymer Nanocomposites. PHYSICAL REVIEW LETTERS 2017; 119:237801. [PMID: 29286700 DOI: 10.1103/physrevlett.119.237801] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/17/2017] [Indexed: 05/26/2023]
Abstract
Using x-ray photon correlation spectroscopy, we examined the slow nanoscale motion of silica nanoparticles individually dispersed in an entangled poly (ethylene oxide) melt at particle volume fractions up to 42%. The nanoparticles, therefore, serve as both fillers for the resulting attractive polymer nanocomposites and probes for the network dynamics therein. The results show that the particle relaxation closely follows the mechanical reinforcement in the nanocomposites only at the intermediate concentrations below the critical value for the chain confinement. Quite unexpectedly, the relaxation time of the particles does not further slow down at higher volume fractions-when all chains are practically on the nanoparticle interface-and decouples from the elastic modulus of the nanocomposites that further increases orders of magnitude.
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Affiliation(s)
- Erkan Senses
- NIST Center for Neutron Research, National Institute of Standards and Technology Gaithersburg, Maryland 20899-8562 USA
- Department of Materials Science and Engineering, University of Maryland College Park, Maryland 20742-2115 USA
| | - Suresh Narayanan
- Advanced Photon Source, Argonne National Laboratory, Argonne, Illinois 60439, USA
| | - Yimin Mao
- NIST Center for Neutron Research, National Institute of Standards and Technology Gaithersburg, Maryland 20899-8562 USA
- Department of Materials Science and Engineering, University of Maryland College Park, Maryland 20742-2115 USA
| | - Antonio Faraone
- NIST Center for Neutron Research, National Institute of Standards and Technology Gaithersburg, Maryland 20899-8562 USA
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19
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Senses E, Tyagi M, Natarajan B, Narayanan S, Faraone A. Chain dynamics and nanoparticle motion in attractive polymer nanocomposites subjected to large deformations. SOFT MATTER 2017; 13:7922-7929. [PMID: 29034930 DOI: 10.1039/c7sm01009e] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/07/2023]
Abstract
The effect of large deformation on the chain dynamics in attractive polymer nanocomposites was investigated using neutron scattering techniques. Quasi-elastic neutron backscattering measurements reveal a substantial reduction of polymer mobility in the presence of attractive, well-dispersed nanoparticles. In addition, large deformations are observed to cause a further slowing down of the Rouse rates at high particle loadings, where the interparticle spacings are slightly smaller than the chain dimensions, i.e. in the strongly confined state. No noticeable change, however, was observed for a lightly confined system. The reptation tube diameter, measured by neutron spin echo, remained unchanged after shear, suggesting that the level of chain-chain entanglements is not significantly affected. The shear-induced changes in the interparticle bridging reflect the slow nanoparticle motion measured by X-ray photon correlation spectroscopy. These results provide a first step for understanding how large shear can significantly affect the segmental motion in nanocomposites and open up new opportunities for designing mechanically responsive soft materials.
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Affiliation(s)
- Erkan Senses
- NIST Center for Neutron Research, National Institute of Standards and Technology Gaithersburg, MD 20899-8562, USA.
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20
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Peng W, Ranganathan R, Keblinski P, Ozisik R. Viscoelastic and Dynamic Properties of Well-Mixed and Phase-Separated Binary Polymer Blends: A Molecular Dynamics Simulation Study. Macromolecules 2017. [DOI: 10.1021/acs.macromol.7b00657] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Wei Peng
- Materials Science
and Engineering, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, Troy, New York 12180, United States
| | - Raghavan Ranganathan
- Materials Science
and Engineering, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, Troy, New York 12180, United States
| | - Pawel Keblinski
- Materials Science
and Engineering, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, Troy, New York 12180, United States
| | - Rahmi Ozisik
- Materials Science
and Engineering, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, Troy, New York 12180, United States
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21
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Senses E, Ansar SM, Kitchens CL, Mao Y, Narayanan S, Natarajan B, Faraone A. Small Particle Driven Chain Disentanglements in Polymer Nanocomposites. PHYSICAL REVIEW LETTERS 2017; 118:147801. [PMID: 28430517 DOI: 10.1103/physrevlett.118.147801] [Citation(s) in RCA: 47] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/29/2016] [Indexed: 06/07/2023]
Abstract
Using neutron spin-echo spectroscopy, x-ray photon correlation spectroscopy, and bulk rheology, we studied the effect of particle size on the single-chain dynamics, particle mobility, and bulk viscosity in athermal polyethylene oxide-gold nanoparticle composites. The results reveal a ≈25% increase in the reptation tube diameter with the addition of nanoparticles smaller than the entanglement mesh size (≈5 nm), at a volume fraction of 20%. The tube diameter remains unchanged in the composite with larger (20 nm) nanoparticles at the same loading. In both cases, the Rouse dynamics is insensitive to particle size. These results provide a direct experimental observation of particle-size-driven disentanglements that can cause non-Einstein-like viscosity trends often observed in polymer nanocomposites.
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Affiliation(s)
- Erkan Senses
- NIST Center for Neutron Research, National Institute of Standards and Technology, Gaithersburg, Maryland 20899-8562, USA
- Department of Materials Science and Engineering, University of Maryland, College Park, Maryland 20742-2115, USA
| | - Siyam M Ansar
- Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, Clemson University, Clemson, South Carolina 29634, USA
| | - Christopher L Kitchens
- Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, Clemson University, Clemson, South Carolina 29634, USA
| | - Yimin Mao
- NIST Center for Neutron Research, National Institute of Standards and Technology, Gaithersburg, Maryland 20899-8562, USA
- Department of Materials Science and Engineering, University of Maryland, College Park, Maryland 20742-2115, USA
| | - Suresh Narayanan
- Advanced Photon Source, Argonne National Laboratory, Argonne, Illinois 60439, USA
| | - Bharath Natarajan
- Materials Measurement Laboratory, National Institute of Standards and Technology, Gaithersburg, Maryland 20899, USA
| | - Antonio Faraone
- NIST Center for Neutron Research, National Institute of Standards and Technology, Gaithersburg, Maryland 20899-8562, USA
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Senses E, Faraone A, Akcora P. Microscopic Chain Motion in Polymer Nanocomposites with Dynamically Asymmetric Interphases. Sci Rep 2016; 6:29326. [PMID: 27457056 PMCID: PMC4960532 DOI: 10.1038/srep29326] [Citation(s) in RCA: 46] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/19/2016] [Accepted: 06/16/2016] [Indexed: 11/30/2022] Open
Abstract
Dynamics of the interphase region between matrix and bound polymers on nanoparticles is important to understand the macroscopic rheological properties of nanocomposites. Here, we present neutron scattering investigations on nanocomposites with dynamically asymmetric interphases formed by a high-glass transition temperature polymer, poly(methyl methacrylate), adsorbed on nanoparticles and a low-glass transition temperature miscible matrix, poly(ethylene oxide). By taking advantage of selective isotope labeling of the chains, we studied the role of interfacial polymer on segmental and collective dynamics of the matrix chains from subnanoseconds to 100 nanoseconds. Our results show that the Rouse relaxation remains unchanged in a weakly attractive composite system while the dynamics significantly slows down in a strongly attractive composite. More importantly, the chains disentangle with a remarkable increase of the reptation tube size when the bound polymer is vitreous. The glassy and rubbery states of the bound polymer as temperature changes underpin the macroscopic stiffening of nanocomposites.
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Affiliation(s)
- Erkan Senses
- NIST Center for Neutron Research, National Institute of Standards and Technology Gaithersburg, MD 20899-8562, USA
- Department of Materials Science and Engineering, University of Maryland, College Park, MD 20742-2115, USA
| | - Antonio Faraone
- NIST Center for Neutron Research, National Institute of Standards and Technology Gaithersburg, MD 20899-8562, USA
| | - Pinar Akcora
- Department of Chemical Engineering and Materials Science, Stevens Institute of Technology, Castle Point on Hudson, Hoboken, NJ 07030-5942
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