Transitional flow blend time

Phase behavior in complex fluids such as polymer blends and block copolymers has been a rich area of the chemical sciences. Near-critical and other transitional phenomena are frequently prominent. Since molecular movement in viscous systems such as these is comparatively slow, phase transitions can be studied more easily in time, and manipulated by quenching and other external influences. Processes for controlled growth of ordered materials are often readily influenced by diffusion, a variety of external fields, and the influence of interacting boundaries, or flow. 

Figure 2.117. Cure of the reactive blend DGEBA + aniline (r = l)/20wt% PES at 100°C (a) change in heat capacity (reversing signal) during isothermal cure at 100°C, with cloud point from OM (A), onset of heat flow phase relaxation (O) (b) glass transitions measured after different isothermal cure times at 100°C (heating rate = 2.5°C/min) numbers indicate cure times on (a) (Swier, unpublished results).

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