TERNARY BLEND Subject

A number of classes of polymer blends containing block copolymers have been studied. Namely, binary blends of a block copolymer with a homopolymer, ternary mixtures of a block copolymer with two homopolymers and blends of two block copolymers. Experimental and theoretical studies of all these mixtures are the subject of Chapter 6. 

The relationship between microstructure and physical properties of ternary nanocomposites has been the subject of intense investigation due to their very complex nature. In this section, the mechanical properties of polymer blend nanocomposites are reviewed in the context of their microstructure. Following this, the various strategies that have been employed to obtain improved filler dispersion and interfacial interactions are mentioned. 

Indeed, simulations of an incompressible ternary A-l-B-l-AB homopolymer/ copolymer blend showed that the values of the argument of the reweighting factor cover a wide range (Fig. 3). Hence computing statistical averages becomes very difficult, because both the numerator and the denominator in Eq. 104 are subject to very large relative errors. 

The model has,also,been applied to mixture of three random copolymers. Conditions for the enhancement of compatibility in polymer blends by the use of a third copolymer are examined as well as the influence of temperature in the phase behavior of ternary mixtures whose constituent binaries may show either UCST or LCST. These findings are, as yet, only theoretical and for space limitation they are not reproduced here. They will be, however, the subject of a forthcoming publication. 

While the compatibilizing efficacy of ABR random copolymers in ternary ABR/ hA/hB blends has been the subject of investigation, we consider only binary blends consisting of an AB diblock copolymer and an ABR random copolymer in this section. Unlike miscible AB/hA blends in which the hA chain can be solubilized within the A microdomains of the AB copolymer or miscible (AB)j(/(AB)p blends in which the A and B blocks of each copolymer reside in their respective microphases, the bicomponent ABR chain caimot be readily... 

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