Miscibility and exchange chemical potential of ring polymers in symmetric ring–ring blends

Ohkuma, Takahiro; Hagita, Katsumi; Murashima, Takahiro; Deguchi, Tetsuo

doi:10.1039/d3sm00108c

Cited by 1 publication

(1 citation statement)

References 68 publications

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“…68 This has been explained in terms of topological solubilization, arguing that chain−ring threading can increase the conformational entropy of rings. Other theoretical approaches to assessing thermodynamics stability present extensions of Flory−Huggins theory, 69 including additional contributions for topological volume, 70,71 all of which focus mainly on large N limit. In our study, however, inspired by the catenane systems, we focus mainly on shorter rings, which should have a limited window of miscibility with chains, even if the two have chemical dissimilarity.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Mixing Linear Polymers with Rings and Catenanes: Bulk and Interfacial Behavior

Staňo,

Likos,

Egorov

2023

Macromolecules

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We derive and parameterize effective interaction potentials between a multitude of different types of ring polymers and linear chains, varying the bending rigidity and solvent quality for the former species. We further develop and apply a density functional treatment for mixtures of both disconnected (chain–ring) and connected (chain-polycatenane) mixtures of the same, drawing coexistence binodals and exploring the ensuing response functions as well as the interface and wetting behavior of the mixtures. We show that worsening of the solvent quality for the rings brings about a stronger propensity for macroscopic phase separation in the linear-polycatenane mixtures, which is predominantly of the demixing type between phases of similar overall particle density. We formulate a simple criterion based on the effective interactions, allowing us to determine whether any specific linear-ring mixture will undergo a demixing phase separation.

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