Nanorods with Different Surface Properties in Directing the Compatibilization Behavior and the Morphological Transition of Immiscible Polymer Blends in Both Shear and Shear-Free Conditions

Yongxiang Zhou, Manxia Huang, Teng Lu, Hongxia Guo

Index: 10.1021/acs.macromol.7b02624

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Abstract

To explore the mechanism of how the nanorod surface properties regulate the compatibilization behavior and the morphology transition in demixing polymer blends, we perform dissipative particle dynamics simulations and study the impact of three typical nanorods on the phase separation kinetics and structure as well as their location and arrangement under both shear-free and shear conditions with the variation of nanorod–polymer affinity parameters. Depending on the dispersion and location of nanorods, blends in the quiescent case either undergo full phase separation and generate bulky two-phase morphology, or experience microphase separation and form BμE-like structure, or proceed viscoelastic phase separation and take the kinetically trapped cocontinuous network morphology, whereas shear flow can either accelerate domain coarsening or strongly impact the phase behavior through shear-induced bulk phase separation or shear-induced ordering transition. Particularly, the shear-induced lamellar phase in Janus nanorod-filled blends chooses parallel orientation and displays the lateral ordering within layers.