Effect of pressure on the α relaxation in glycerol and xylitol

Combined description of pressure-volume-temperature and dielectric relaxation of several polymeric and low-molecular-weight organic glass-formers using SL-TS2 approach

We apply our recently-developed mean-field "SL-TS2" (two-state Sanchez-Lacombe) model to simultaneously describe dielectric α-relaxation time, τ_α, and pressure-volume-temperature (PVT) data in four polymers (polystyrene, poly(methylmethacrylate), poly(vinyl acetate) and poly(cyclohexane methyl acrylate)) and four organic molecular glass formers (ortho-terphenyl, glycerol, PCB-62, and PDE). Previously, it has been shown that for all eight materials, the Casalini-Roland thermodynamical scaling, τ_α = f(Tvγsp) (where T is temperature and v_sp is specific volume) is satisfied (R. Casalini and C. M. Roland, Phys. Rev. E, 2004, 69(6), 62501). It has also been previously shown that the same scaling emerges naturally (for sufficiently low pressures) within the "SL-TS2" framework (V. V. Ginzburg, Soft Matter, 2021, 17, 9094-9106). Here, we fit the ambient pressure curves for the relaxation time and the specific volume as functions of temperature for the eight materials and observe a good agreement between theory and experiment. We then use the Casalini-Roland scaling to convert those results into "master curves", thus enabling predictions of relaxation times and specific volumes at elevated pressures. The proposed approach can be used to describe other glass-forming materials, both low-molecular-weight and polymeric.

Suppression of Orientational Correlations in the Viscous-Liquid State of Hyperquenched Pressure-Densified Glycerol

Glycerol pressurized to 2 kbar and hyperquenched from the bulk liquid at rates of about -10 000  K/s, has been frozen to an extreme out-of-equilibrium state. As compared to conventionally cooled melts, the resulting material exhibits lower orientational correlations, enabling the observation of a secondary relaxation peak in the ambient-pressure dielectric response. The hyperquenching rather than the pressurizing part of the preparation protocol induces the observed structural changes. These vanish entirely only well above the glass transition temperature of the equilibrium liquid and are evidence for strong similarities between hyperquenched and vapor-deposited glass formers.

Influence of the Internal Structure and Intermolecular Interactions on the Correlation between Structural (α) and Secondary (β-JG) Relaxation below the Glass Transition Temperature in Neat Probucol and Its Binary Mixtures with Modified Saccharides

Broadband dielectric spectroscopy (BDS) has been used to study the molecular dynamics and aging process in neat probucol (PRO) as well as its binary mixtures with selected acetylated saccharides. In particular, we applied the Casalini and Roland approach to determine structural relaxation times in the glassy state of the examined systems (so-called isostructural times, τ_iso). Next, using the calculated τ_iso, primitive relaxation times of the coupling model were obtained and compared to the experimental secondary β (Johari-Goldstein (JG) type) relaxation times. Interestingly, it turned out that there is a correlation between the β-JG and the structural (α)-relaxation processes below the glass transition temperature (T < T_g) in each investigated sample. This is a new observation compared to previous studies demonstrating that such a relationship exists only in the supercooled liquid state of neat PRO. Moreover, it was revealed that the stretching parameters obtained from the aging procedure are very close to the ones determined by fitting the dielectric data above the T_g with the use of the Kohlrausch-Williams-Watts function, indicating that the aging process is governed by the α-relaxation. Complementary Fourier transform infrared and X-ray diffraction measurements allowed us to find a possible reason for these findings. It was demonstrated that although there are very weak intermolecular interactions between PRO and modified saccharides, the intra- and intermolecular structure of PRO is practically unaffected by the presence of modified saccharides.

Theoretical and Experimental Study of Compression Effects on Structural Relaxation of Glass-Forming Liquids

We develop the elastically collective nonlinear Langevin equation theory of bulk relaxation of glass-forming liquids to investigate molecular mobility under compression conditions. The applied pressure restricts more molecular motion and therefore significantly slows down the molecular dynamics when increasing the pressure. We quantitatively determine the temperature and pressure dependence of the structural relaxation time. To validate our model, dielectric spectroscopy experiments for three rigid and nonpolymeric supramolecules are carried out at ambient and elevated pressures. The numerical results quantitatively agree with experimental data.

Influence of Annealing in the Close Vicinity of Tg on the Reorganization within Dimers and Its Impact on the Crystallization Kinetics of Gemfibrozil

In this paper, broadband dielectric spectroscopy (BDS) has been applied to study the molecular dynamics and crystallization kinetics of the antihyperlipidemic active pharmaceutical ingredient (API), gemfibrozil (GEM), as well as its deuterated (dGEM) and methylated (metGEM) derivatives, characterized by different types and strengths of intermolecular interactions. Moreover, calorimetric and infrared measurements have been carried out to characterize the thermal properties of examined samples and to probe a change in the H-bonding pattern in GEM, respectively. We found that the dielectric spectra of all examined compounds, collected below the glass transition temperature (T_g), reveal the presence of two secondary relaxations (β, γ). According to the coupling model (CM) predictions, it was assumed that the slower process (β) is of JG type, whereas the faster one (γ) has an intramolecular origin. Interestingly, the extensive crystallization kinetics measurements performed after applying two paths, i.e., the standard procedure (cooling and subsequently heating up to the appropriate temperature, T_c), as well as annealing at two temperatures in the vicinity of T_g and further heating up to T_c, showed that the annealing increases the crystallization rate in the case of native API, while the thermal history of the sample has no significant impact on the pace of this process in the two derivatives of GEM. Analysis of the dielectric strength (Δε) of the α-process during annealing, together with the results of Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) measurements, suggested that the reorganization within dimeric structures formed between the GEM molecules is responsible for the observed behavior. Importantly, our results differ from those obtained by Tominaka et al. (Tominaka, S.; Kawakami, K.; Fukushima, M.; Miyazaki, A.Physical Stabilization of Pharmaceutical Glasses Based on Hydrogen Bond Reorganization under Sub-T_g Temperature Mol. Pharm. 2017 14 264 273 10.1021/acs.molpharmaceut.6b00866.), who demonstrated that the sub-T_g annealing of ritonavir (RTV), which is able to form extensive supramolecular hydrogen bonds, protects this active substance against crystallization. Therefore, based on these contradictory reports, one can hypothesize that materials forming H-bonded structures, characterized by varying architecture, may behave differently after annealing in the vicinity of the glass transition temperature.

Coupling between structural relaxation and diffusion in glass-forming liquids under pressure variation

We theoretically investigate structural relaxation and activated diffusion of glass-forming liquids at different pressures using both Elastically Collective Nonlinear Langevin Equation (ECNLE) theory and molecular dynamics (MD) simulations.

Studies on the internal medium-range ordering and high pressure dynamics in modified ibuprofens

Broadband dielectric spectroscopy (BDS), combined with the X-ray diffraction (XRD) and Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) techniques, was used to study the dynamics of the primary (α) relaxation process and slow mode (SM), as well as structural properties and intermolecular interactions, in the methyl-, isopropyl-, hexyl-, and benzyl derivative of a well-known pharmaceutical, ibuprofen (IBU). Unexpectedly, the XRD and FTIR methods revealed the formation of medium-range ordering together with some molecular organization, which probably leads to the creation of small aggregates at the scale of several microns at lower temperatures. Moreover, high pressure dielectric experiments revealed that the SM (observed in the ambient pressure data) is not detected in the loss spectra of compressed IBU esters, which is consistent with the results reported previously for propylene carbonate and dioxolane derivatives. This finding can be interpreted as connected to either the comparable time scale of the structural dynamics and slow mode or suppression of the motions responsible for the latter process at elevated pressure. Additionally, it was found that the pressure coefficient of the glass transition temperature (dTg/dp) and activation volume (ΔV) change with molecular weight (Mw) in a non-monotonic way. It might be related to various chemical structures, conformations, and intermolecular interactions, as well as different architecture of supramolecular aggregates in the investigated compounds.

Studying structural and local dynamics in model H-bonded active ingredient - Curcumin in the supercooled and glassy states at various thermodynamic conditions

Different experimental techniques were applied to study thermal and structural properties, strength of H-bonds, possible keto-enol tautomerism and molecular dynamics at various thermodynamic conditions in the H-bonded active substance, curcumin (CRM). Dielectric measurements revealed dynamical features of examined compound that are uncharacteristic for the associated systems. This includes enormously large pressure coefficient of the glass transition temperature and prominent drop of the fragility with compression. Simultaneously, the shape of α-process slightly broadened at elevated pressures. Infrared investigations demonstrated that this effect is related to the variation in the population of H-bonds. Moreover, we studied the changes in the structural and dynamical properties of the glasses prepared upon cooling of the melt (ordinary glass, OG) and the one obtained after compression of CRM in the liquid phase and decompression at T = 293 K (dense glass, DG). Interestingly, during the aging of the latter sample, a clear shift of the β-relaxation towards higher frequencies was noted. This unexpected result indicated that the density of DG is probably getting smaller with time. Complementary X-ray diffraction experiments confirmed this supposition. Additionally, they showed that in DG there are traces of polymorph II of CRM that has a higher density than initial crystals (polymorph I). Finally, infrared studies demonstrated that H-bond pattern in DG is slightly different with respect to OG. Furthermore, Raman investigations suggested that probably keto-enol tautomerism might be shifted towards diketo form in the glass obtained at high compression. Our investigations are very interesting in the context of better understanding of the behavior of associated systems at high compression as well as provide a better insight into dynamics of higher density glasses produced at elevated pressures.

Glassy dynamics predicted by mutual role of free and activation volumes

Broadband Dielectric Spectroscopy (BDS) at elevated pressures and Positron Annihilation Lifetime Spectroscopy (PALS) are employed to elucidate the importance of the ratio of activation and free volumes during vitrification. We show that this ratio has a linear correlation with the structural relaxation of glass forming liquids in a wide temperature range hence engendering it as a vital input in the description of the dynamic glass transition.

High-pressure dielectric studies on 1,6-anhydro-β-D-mannopyranose (plastic crystal) and 2,3,4-tri-O-acetyl-1,6-anhydro-β-D-glucopyranose (canonical glass)

Broadband Dielectric Spectroscopy was applied to investigate molecular dynamics of two anhydrosaccharides, i.e., 1,6-anhydro-β-D-mannopyranose, anhMAN (hydrogen-bonded system) and 2,3,4-tri-O-acetyl-1,6-anhydro-β-D-glucopyranose, ac-anhGLU (van der Waals material), at different thermodynamic conditions. Moreover, the reported data were compared with those recently published for two other H-bonded systems, i.e., 1,6-anhydro-β-D-glucopyranose (anhGLU) and D-glucose (D-GLU). A direct comparison of the dynamical behavior of the materials with a similar chemical structure but significantly differing by the degrees of freedom, complexity, and intermolecular interactions made it possible to probe the impact of compression on the fragility, Temperature-Pressure Superpositioning and pressure coefficient of the glassy crystal/glass transition temperatures (dT_gc/dp ; dT_g/dp). Moreover, the correlation between dT_gc/dp determined experimentally from the high-pressure dielectric data and the Ehrenfest equation has been tested for the plastic crystals (anhGLU and anhMAN) for the first time. Interestingly, a satisfactory agreement was found between both approaches. It is a quite intriguing finding which can be rationalized by the fact that the studied materials are characterized by the low complexity (lower degrees of freedom with respect to the molecular mobility) as well as ordered internal structure. Therefore, one can speculate that in contrast to the ordinary glasses the dynamics of the plastic crystals might be described with the use of a single order parameter. However, to confirm this thesis further, pressure-volume-temperature (PVT) experiments enabling calculations of the Prigogine Defay ratio are required.

Plastic Deformation of Pressured Metallic Glass

Although pressured metallic glass (MG) has been reported in the literature; there are few studies focusing on pressure effects on the structure; dynamics and its plastic deformation. In this paper; we report on and characterize; via molecular dynamics simulation, the structure and dynamics heterogeneity of pressured MGs, and explore a causal link between local structures and plastic deformation mechanism of pressured glass. The results exhibit that the dynamical heterogeneity of metallic liquid is more pronounced at high pressure, while the MGs were less fragile after the release of external pressure, reflected by the non-Gaussian parameter (NGP). High pressure glass shows better plastic deformation; and the local strain zone distributed more uniformly than of in normal glass. Further research indicates that although the number of icosahedrons in pressured glass was much larger than that in normal glass, while the interpenetrating connections of icosahedra (ICOI) exhibited spatial correlations were rather poor; In addition, the number of ‘fast’ atoms indexed by the atoms’ moving distance is larger than that in normal glass; leading to the sharp decreasing in number of icosahedrons during deformation. An uniform distribution of ‘fast’ atoms also contributed to better plastic deformation ability in the pressured glass. These findings may suggest a link between the deformation and destruction of icosahedra with short-range order.

The effect of hydrogen bonding propensity and enantiomeric composition on the dynamics of supercooled ketoprofen - dielectric, rheological and NMR studies

The aim of this work is to analyze in detail the effect of small hydrogen bonding (HB) structures and enantiomeric composition on the dynamics of glass-forming liquid ketoprofen. For that purpose dielectric relaxation, rheological and NMR studies were performed. Investigated samples are racemic ketoprofen, a single enantiomer of ketoprofen and a racemic ketoprofen methyl ester with no tendency to form HB dimers. The combination of complementary experimental techniques enables us to show that macroscopic viscosity η and α-relaxation time τα have nearly the same temperature dependencies, whereas the relation between the viscosity (or molecular reorientation) and the translational self-diffusion coefficient violates Stokes-Einstein law already at high temperature. Additionally, based on dielectric relaxation studies performed on increased pressure we were able to identify similarities and key differences in the supercooled liquid dynamics of investigated materials affected by their tendency to form intermolecular hydrogen bonds. This includes the effect of pressure on the glass transition temperature Tg, changes in the fragility parameter m and activation volume ΔV, the role of thermal energy and density fluctuations in governing the viscous liquid dynamics (Ev/Ep ratio). Finally, we have also demonstrated that the dynamic behaviour of a single enantiomer and the racemic mixture of the same compound are very much alike. Nevertheless, some slight differences were observed, particularly in the τα(T) dependencies measured in the vicinity of glass transition both at ambient and elevated pressure.

Observation of the nearly constant loss in super rigid saccharides: in search of a hidden crossover in dynamics deep in the glassy state

The molecular dynamics of three saccharides: D-glucose, 1,6-anhydro-D-glucose (levoglucosan) and 1,6:2,3-dianhydro-β-D-mannopyranose of various degrees of freedom, number of hydroxyl groups and internal structures was investigated over a wide range of temperatures and frequencies by means of Broadband Dielectric Spectroscopy (BDS). Despite the pronounced variety in the physicochemical properties of the carbohydrates, no change in the shape of the structural relaxation process was observed in the vicinity of the glass transition temperature (β(KWW) = 0.5). On the other hand further studies of the Debye-Stokes-Einstein relationship between dc conductivity and structural dynamics revealed some significant changes connected with the ability to form strong H-bonded structures. Moreover the presence of nearly constant loss (NCL) at moderate frequencies and just below the T(g) in the glassy state of levoglucosan and 1,6:2,3-dianhydro-β-D-mannopyranose was noticeable. We followed the temperature evolution of ε'' located at frequencies f = 0.1 kHz and f = 1 kHz, where the NCL is detected. Interestingly, a clear change in the dynamics far below the glass transition was observed in both compounds. This crossover (T(c)), found in different materials, and studied by various experimental techniques, is usually interpreted as being caused by the freezing of the Johari-Goldstein (JG) relaxation process. Alternatively it can also be due to the increasing anharmonicity in the density of vibrational states. Interestingly, it was shown that the slope of ε''(T) measured above the T(c) slightly changes while below the T(c) stays constant after physical aging. This is related to the densification of the sample that might result in steric hindrance and suppression of some kind of motion occurring in the glassy state, involving the larger parts of the molecules.

Negative Pressure Vitrification of the Isochorically Confined Liquid in Nanopores

Dielectric relaxation studies for model glass-forming liquids confined to nanoporous alumina matrices were examined together with high-pressure results. For confined liquids which show the deviation from bulk dynamics upon approaching the glass transition (the change from the Vogel-Fulcher-Tammann to the Arrhenius law), we have observed a striking agreement between the temperature dependence of the α-relaxation time in the Arrhenius-like region and the isochoric relaxation times extrapolated from the positive range of pressure to the negative pressure domain. Our finding provides strong evidence that glass-forming liquid confined to native nanopores enters the isochoric conditions once the mobility of the interfacial layer becomes frozen in. This results in the negative pressure effects on cooling. We also demonstrate that differences in the sensitivity of various glass-forming liquids to the "confinement effects" can be rationalized by considering the relative importance of thermal energy and density contributions in controlling the α-relaxation dynamics (the E(v)/E(p) ratio).

A universal modified van der Waals equation of state. Part I: Polymer and mineral glass formers

PVT data of glass formers (minerals and polymers) published in the literature are re-analyzed. All the polymer glass formers (PS, PVAc, PVME, PMMA, POMS, PBMA, PVC, PE, PP, PMPS, PMTS, PPG) present two main properties which have never been noted: a) the isobars P(V) have a fan structure characterized by the two parameters T* and V*; b) the isotherms verify the principle of temperature-pressure superposition for P < P*. From these properties we show that the Equation Of State (EOS) can be put on a modified van der Waals form (VW-EOS), (V - V*) = (V0 - V*)P*/(P + P*). The characteristic pressure P* and the covolume V* are T and P independent. In polymer glass formers P* and V* have same values in the α (melt) and β (glass) domains. The characteristic temperatures T* deduced from the Fan Structure of the Isobar (FSIb) above and below T(g) are different. The characteristic temperature T*(α) of the melt state is found near the Vogel temperature T0 for linear polymers and more than 100 K below T0 for atactic polymers (with pendent groups). This difference in atactic polymers (and in some low molecular weight compounds) is explained by the importance of the β motions due to the pendent groups. The independence of T0 on P is discussed. A modified VFT equation (analogous to the compensation law and Meyer-Neldel rule) giving the relaxation time τ of the α motions as a function of P and T is proposed. The fan structure of the isotherm logτ versus P is explained. It is shown that organic non-polymeric liquids (C6H12, C6H14, DHIQ, OTP, Glycerol, Salol, PDE, DGEBA), mineral glass (SiO2, Se, GeSe4, GeSe2, GeO2, As2O3 and two metallic glasses (LaCe and CaAl alloys) verify this VW-EOS with similar accuracy. The relation P* = B 0/γ B among the characteristic pressure P*, the zero-pressure modulus B0 and the Slatter-Grüneisen anharmonicity parameter γ(B0 deduced from the VW-EOS, is observed in all the glass formers.

New insight into relaxation dynamics of an epoxy/hydroxy functionalized polybutadiene from dielectric and mechanical spectroscopy studies

Dielectric and mechanical spectroscopy methods have been employed to describe the temperature dependencies of the segmental and macromolecular relaxation rates in epoxy/hydroxy functionalized polybutadiene. Dielectric studies on the dynamics of segments of the polymer as well as the mobility of small ions trapped in the system have been carried out both as a function of temperature and pressure under isobaric and isothermal conditions, respectively.

The role of the isothermal bulk modulus in the molecular dynamics of super-cooled liquids

Elastic models imply that the energy expended for a flow event in ultra-viscous matter coincides with the elastic work required for deforming and re-arranging the environment of the moving entity. This is quite promising for explaining the strong non-Arrhenius behavior of dynamic quantities of fragile super-cooled liquids. We argue that the activation volume obtained from dielectric relaxation and light-scattering experiments for super-cooled liquids should scale with the Gibbs free energy of activation, with a proportionality constant determined by the isothermal bulk modulus and its pressure derivative, as described by an earlier thermodynamic elastic model. For certain super-cooled liquids the bulk compression transpiring in the local environment, as governed by the isothermal bulk modulus, play a significant role in the reorientational dynamics, with far-field density fluctuations and volume changes avoided by shear deformation.

Molecular dynamics and crystallization phenomenon of supercooled and glassy DNA and RNA nucleosides: β-adenosine, β-thymidine, and β-uridine

Nucleosides are chemical compounds that have an extremely important biological role; they can be found in all types of living organisms. They are crucial components from which DNA and RNA acids are built. In addition, nucleosides are key regulators of many physiological processes. In this paper, the molecular dynamics in the liquid and glassy state of three selected nucleosides, β-adenosine, β-thymidine, and β-uridine, was investigated by means of dielectric spectroscopy. Our results revealed multiple relaxation processes associated with different types of molecular motions. Besides the primary α relaxation, two secondary modes in the glassy states of examined compounds were identified. Crystallization progress monitored by dielectric spectroscopy and x-ray diffraction technique at isostructural relaxation conditions revealed that the examined nucleosides possess completely different tendencies to recrystallize from the liquid as well as the glassy state. We have also made an attempt to predict the time scale of molecular motion below the glass transition temperatures of the respective nucleosides to discuss their potential stability at room temperature over prolonged storage time. Finally, combination of molecular mobility studies with evaluation of thermodynamic parameters from calorimetric measurements allowed us to discuss the fundamental roles of both kinetic and thermodynamic factors in governing the physical stability of the glassy state.

Dynamic heterogeneities, boson peak, and activation volume in glass-forming liquids

There are various arguments and models connecting the characteristic length associated with the boson peak vibrations ξ to the length scale of dynamical heterogeneity L(het). ξ is usually defined as the ratio of the transverse sound velocity to the boson peak frequency. Here we present pressure, temperature, and molecular weight dependencies of ξ, estimated using light scattering, in a few molecular and polymeric glass formers. These dependencies are compared with respective dependencies of the activation volume ΔV(#) in the same materials. Good agreement is found for the pressure and molecular weight dependencies of ξ and ΔV(#) measured at the glass transition temperature T(g). These results provide more evidence for a possible relationship between the sensitivity of structural relaxation to density (activation volume) and the heterogeneity volume. However, contrary to the expectations for L(het), ξ does not decrease with temperature above T(g) in most of the studied materials. The temperature dependence of ξ is compared to that of L(het) in glycerol and orthoterphenyl (OTP) estimated from literature data. The analysis shows a clear difference in the behavior of ξ(T) and ΔV(#)(T) at temperatures above T(g), although ΔV(#)(T)(1/3) and L(het)(T) have similar temperature dependence. Possible reasons for the observed difference are discussed.

Connection between slow and fast dynamics of molecular liquids around the glass transition

The mean-square displacement (MSD) was measured by neutron scattering at various temperatures and pressures for a number of molecular glass-forming liquids. The MSD is invariant along the glass-transition line at the pressure studied, thus establishing an "intrinsic" Lindemann criterion for any given liquid. A one-to-one connection between the MSD's temperature dependence and the liquid's fragility is found when the MSD is evaluated on a time scale of ∼4 ns , but does not hold when the MSD is evaluated at shorter times. The findings are discussed in terms of the elastic model and the role of relaxations, and the correlations between slow and fast dynamics are addressed.

Glassy dynamics under superhigh pressure

Nearly all glass-forming liquids feature, along with the structural alpha-relaxation process, a faster secondary process (beta relaxation), whose nature belongs to the great mysteries of glass physics. However, for some of these liquids, no well-pronounced secondary relaxation is observed. A prominent example is the archetypical glass-forming liquid glycerol. In the present work, by performing dielectric spectroscopy under superhigh pressures up to 6 GPa, we show that in glycerol a significant secondary relaxation peak appears in the dielectric loss at P>3 GPa. We identify this beta relaxation to be of Johari-Goldstein type and discuss its relation to the excess wing. We provide evidence for a smooth but significant increase in glass-transition temperature and fragility on increasing pressure.

On the pressure dependence of the fragility of glycerol

This work was motivated by ostensibly contradictory results from different groups regarding the effect of pressure on the fragility of glycerol. We present new experimental data for an intermediate pressure regime showing that the fragility increases with pressure up to about 1.8 GPa, becoming invariant at higher pressures. There is no discrepancy among the various literature data taken in toto. The behavior of glycerol is quite distinct from that of normal liquids, a result of its substantial hydrogen bonding.

Influence of pressure on quasielastic scattering in glasses: relationship to the boson peak

We report unexpectedly strong variations in the quasielastic scattering (QES) intensity in glasses under pressure. Analysis of the data reveals strong correlations between pressure-induced changes in the QES intensity and the intensity of the boson peak. This observation emphasizes a direct relationship between these two components of the fast dynamics. In addition, we observe changes of the QES spectral shape that can be interpreted as pressure-induced variations in the underlying energy landscape.

Idealized glass transitions under pressure: dynamics versus thermodynamics

The interplay of slow dynamics and thermodynamic features of dense liquids is studied by examining how the glass transition changes depending on the presence or absence of Lennard-Jones-like attractions. Quite different thermodynamic behavior leaves the dynamics unchanged, with important consequences for high-pressure experiments on glassy liquids. Numerical results are obtained within mode-coupling theory (MCT), but the qualitative features are argued to hold more generally. A simple square-well model can be used to explain generic features found in experiment.

Novel Method to Detect the Volumetric Glass → Liquid Transition at High Pressures: Glycerol as a Test Case

We report a novel method of detecting the glass --> liquid transition at high pressures, which comprises measuring the relative volume change incurred upon heating glassy samples into the liquid state. We show data on glycerol in the pressure range 0.050-1.00 GPa to demonstrate the viability of the method. The reversible glass --> liquid transition is observed by means of a kink in the relative volume change on heating the sample isobarically, which is attributed to the glass --> liquid transition temperature Tg. This kink can only be observed in the second and subsequent heating cycles since it is superposed by a compaction in the first heating cycle. The isobaric thermal expansivity beta, which is closely related to the first derivative of this curve, shows the features expected for a glass --> liquid transition, including a sharp rise of beta(glass) in a narrow temperature interval to beta(viscous liquid) and an accompanying overshoot effect. Both Tg and the size of the overshoot effect vary in accordance with theory upon changing the ratio of cooling to heating rates. From the shape of this curve the onset, inflection, overshoot peak, and endpoint of the glass --> liquid transition can be extracted, which can be employed to calculate the reduced glass transition width as a measure for the fragility of the liquid. Comparison with literature data allows quantifying the accuracy of the liquid's thermal expansivity beta to be at least +/-10%, while the error in beta is significantly larger for the expansivity of the glassy state. The reproducibility of the glass --> liquid transition temperature Tg is better than +/-2 K. Our glycerol data confirms literature studies showing a nonlinear increase of Tg with increasing pressure (approximately 35 K/GPa on average), which is accompanied by an increase in fragility.

Effect of chain length on fragility and thermodynamic scaling of the local segmental dynamics in poly(methylmethacrylate)

Local segmental relaxation properties of poly(methylmethacrylate) (PMMA) of varying molecular weight are measured by dielectric spectroscopy and analyzed in combination with the equation of state obtained from PVT measurements. Significant variations of glass transition temperature and fragility with molecular weight are observed. In accord with the general properties of glass-forming materials, single molecular weight dependent scaling exponent gamma is sufficient to define the mean segmental relaxation time taualpha and its distribution. This exponent can be connected to the Gruneisen parameter and related thermodynamic quantities, thus demonstrating the interrelationship between dynamics and thermodynamics in PMMA. Changes in the relaxation properties ("dynamic crossover") are observed as a function of both temperature and pressure, with taualpha serving as the control parameter for the crossover. At longer taualpha another change in the dynamics is apparent, associated with a decoupling of the local segmental process from ionic conductivity.

Correlations between isobaric and isochoric fragilities and thermodynamical scaling exponent for glass-forming liquids

Two correlations concerning the isobaric and isochoric fragilities, m(P) and m(V), as well as the scaling exponent gamma reported by Casalini and Roland [Phys. Rev. E 72, 031503 (2005)] have been examined for several van der Waals and hydrogen-bonded glass formers. It has been pointed out that the correlations lead to some serious inconsistency with the exponent gamma, which is expected to be a constant dependent only on material, but varies also on pressure if experimentally found pressure dependences of m(P) are taken into account. This problem could be solved in the case of van der Waals liquids, but then at least one of the correlations becomes dependent on thermodynamic conditions, and consequently, loses its universality. However, some H-bonded systems, due to properties of hydrogen bonding, have been well argued not to be included to determine the correlations independently of thermodynamic conditions. Furthermore, it has been noticed that another correlation concerning the fragility, between m(P) and the structural relaxation peak breadth, yields discrepancies in comparison with results of experiments under elevated pressure.

Glasses under high pressure: a link to colloidal science?

Whether glass formation is mainly driven by temperature or by pressure is an open question that is now being addressed in high-pressure experiments. Here we propose that some insight into these questions could be gained by comparing in a suitable manner with colloidal glass-transition data. Based on such a comparison, a cross-over is found from the usual regime of molecular glasses (where temperature effects tend to be important) to a very-high-pressure regime (where density effects eventually take over). This regime is found to be located at pressures higher than commonly studied in today's glass-transition experiments.

Why liquids are fragile

The fragilities (T(g)-normalized temperature dependence of alpha-relaxation times) of 33 glass-forming liquids and polymers are compared for isobaric, mP, and isochoric, mV, conditions. We find that the two quantities are linearly correlated: mP = (37+/-3) + (0.84+/-0.05)mV. This result has obvious and important consequences, since the ratio mV/mP is a measure of the relative degree to which temperature and density control the dynamics. Moreover, we show that the fragility itself is a consequence of the relative interplay of temperature and density effects near T(g). Specifically, strong behavior reflects a substantial contribution from density (jammed dynamics), while the relaxation of fragile liquids is more thermally activated. Drawing on the scaling law log(tau) = I(T upsilon(gamma)), a physical interpretation of this result in terms of the intermolecular potential is offered.

Do Theories of the Glass Transition, in which the Structural Relaxation Time Does Not Define the Dispersion of the Structural Relaxation, Need Revision?

Upon decreasing temperature or increasing pressure, a noncrystallizing liquid will vitrify; that is, the structural relaxation time, taualpha, becomes so long that the system cannot attain an equilibrium configuration in the available time. Theories, including the well-known free volume and configurational entropy models, explain the glass transition by invoking a single quantity that governs the structural relaxation time. The dispersion of the structural relaxation (i.e., the structural relaxation function) is either not addressed or is derived as a parallel consequence (or afterthought) and thus is independent of taualpha. In these models the time dependence of the relaxation bears no fundamental relationship to the value of taualpha or other dynamic properties. Such approaches appear to be incompatible with a general experimental fact recently discovered in glass-formers: for a given material at a fixed value of taualpha, the dispersion is constant, independent of thermodynamic conditions (T and P); that is, the shape of the alpha-relaxation function depends only on the relaxation time. If derived independently of taualpha, it is an unlikely result that the dispersion of the structural relaxation would be uniquely defined by taualpha.

Molecular dynamics study of the thermal and the density effects on the local and the large-scale motion of polymer melts: scaling properties and dielectric relaxation

Results from a molecular dynamics simulation of a melt of unentangled polymers are presented. The translational motion, the large-scale and the local reorientation processes of the chains, as well as their relations with the so-called "normal" and "segmental" dielectric relaxation modes are thoroughly investigated in wide temperature and pressure ranges. The thermodynamic states are well fitted by the phenomenological Tait equation of state. A global time-temperature-pressure superposition principle of both the translational and the rotational dynamics is evidenced. The scaling is more robust than the usual Rouse model. The latter provides insight but accurate comparison with the simulation calls for modifications to account for both the local chain stiffness and the nonexponential relaxation. The study addresses the issue whether the temperature or the density is a dominant control parameter of the dynamics or the two quantities give rise to comparable effects. By examining the ratio /alphatau//alphaP between the isochronic and isobaric expansivities, one finds that the temperature is dominant when the dynamics is fast. If the relaxation slows down, the fluctuations of the free volume increase their role and become comparable to those of the thermal energy. Detectable cross-correlation between the "normal-mode" and the "segmental" dielectric relaxations is found and contrasted with the usual assumption of independent modes.

Primary and secondary relaxations in bis-5-hydroxypentylphthalate

Broadband dielectric spectroscopy was used to study the relaxation dynamics in bis-5-hydroxypentylphthalate (BHPP) under both isobaric and isothermal conditions. The relaxation dynamics exhibit complex behavior, arising from hydrogen bonding in the BHPP. At ambient pressure above the glass transition temperature T(g), the dielectric spectrum shows a broad structural relaxation peak with a prominent excess wing toward higher frequencies. As temperature is decreased below T(g), the excess wing transforms into two distinct peaks, both having Arrhenius behavior with activation energies equal to 58.8 and 32.6 kJmol for slower (beta) and faster (gamma) processes, respectively. Furthermore, the relaxation times for the beta process increase with increasing pressure, whereas the faster gamma relaxation is practically insensitive to pressure changes. Analysis of the properties of these secondary relaxations suggests that the beta peak can be identified as an intermolecular Johari-Goldstein (JG) process. However, its separation in frequency from the alpha relaxation, and both its activation energy and activation volume, differ substantially from values calculated from the breadth of the structural relaxation peak. Thus, the dynamics of BHPP appear to be an exception to the usual correlation between the respective properties of the structural and the JG secondary relaxations.

Effects of water on the primary and secondary relaxation of xylitol and sorbitol: implication on the origin of the Johari-Goldstein relaxation

Dielectric spectroscopy was employed to study the effects of water on the primary alpha -relaxation and the secondary beta -relaxation of xylitol. The measurements were made on anhydrous xylitol and mixtures of xylitol with water with three different water concentrations over a temperature range from 173 K to 293 K. The alpha -relaxation speeds up with increasing concentration of water in xylitol, whereas the rate of the beta -relaxation is essentially unchanged. Some systematic differences in the behavior of alpha -relaxation for anhydrous xylitol and the mixtures were observed. Our findings confirm all the observations of Nozaki et al. [J. Non-Cryst. Solids 307, 349 (2002)]] in sorbitol/water mixtures. Effects of water on both the alpha - and beta -relaxation dynamics in xylitol and sorbitol are explained by using the coupling model.

Adam–Gibbs model for the supercooled dynamics in the ortho-terphenyl ortho-phenylphenol mixture

Dielectric measurements of the alpha-relaxation time were carried out on a mixture of ortho-terphenyl (OTP) with ortho-phenylphenol, over a range of temperatures at two pressures, 0.1 and 28.8 MPa. These are the same conditions for which heat capacity, thermal expansivity, and compressibility measurements were reported by Takahara et al. [S. Takahara, M. Ishikawa, O. Yamamuro, and T. Matsuo, J. Phys. Chem. B 103, 3288 (1999)] for the same mixture. From the combined dynamic and thermodynamic data, we determine that density and temperature govern to an equivalent degree the variation of the relaxation times with temperature. Over the measured range, the dependence of the relaxation times on configurational entropy is in accord with the Adam-Gibbs model, and this dependence is invariant to pressure. Consistent with the implied connection between relaxation and thermodynamic properties, the kinetic and thermodynamic fragilities are found to have the same pressure independence. In comparing the relaxation properties of the mixture to those of neat OTP, density effects are stronger in the former, perhaps suggestive of less efficient packing.