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A comparative study on branched polymers formed by T‐shaped junctions and by H‐shaped junctions
Author(s) -
Shiau LieDing
Publication year - 1999
Publication title -
macromolecular theory and simulations
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.37
H-Index - 56
eISSN - 1521-3919
pISSN - 1022-1344
DOI - 10.1002/(sici)1521-3919(19991101)8:6<586::aid-mats586>3.0.co;2-h
Subject(s) - branching (polymer chemistry) , polymer , chain (unit) , long chain , molecule , materials science , polymer chemistry , polymer science , chemistry , physics , composite material , organic chemistry , astronomy
In this paper, a statistical model is developed to determine the number‐average and weight‐average molecular weights of a branched polymer system formed through random branching of polymer chains. The average properties of the branched structures formed by T‐shaped junctions and by H‐shaped junctions through random branching of polymer chains are compared in detail. The model indicates that the H‐shaped chain connections can form a gel molecule while the T‐shaped chain connections alone can not cause gelation. Because only the randomly branched polymers for an equilibrium system are considered (under Flory's simplifying assumptions), the present results would not be a rigorous proof that the H‐shaped junctions are required to form a gel molecule in any type of reaction system. However, the present paper shows that the Macosko‐Miller model can be applied to this type of problem in a straightforward manner. The gel point for the branched structures formed by H‐shaped junctions can also be determined by the model.