Self-assembly in polymer blends

Mixtures of two homopolymers (A and B) and their corresponding diblock copolymer (A-B) are polymeric counterparts of mixtures of water, oil and surfactant. The immiscible nature between water and oil is also observed in polymer blends due to the fact that most polymers are immiscible in each other. The addition of diblock copolymers into blends of homopolymers has effects similar to adding surfactants into water-oil mixtures. The resulting reduction in interfacial tension and formation of the preferred interfacial curvature yield a variety of self-assembled structures. 

Microemulsions Background, New Concepts, Applications, Perspectives. Edited by Cosima Stubenrauch 2009 Blackwell Publishing Ltd. ISBN 978-1 -405-16782-6 

At temperatures 184°C, phase separation is indicated by the significant increase in low q scattering. Light scattering experiments also show that the cloud point of the polymeric mixture is located at 180 5°C. 

Self-assembled polymeric structures have promising applications in nanomaterials synthesis. As demonstrated by Zhou and Lodge for bicontinuous microemulsions of poly-isoprene/polystyrene [9], mesoporous polymeric networks (Fig. 7.4) can be obtained by 

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