Macroscopic polymer analogues

Abstract

Disordered fiber mats made of glass microfibers (GMF) were studied using small‐angle light scattering (SALS), ultrasmall‐angle X‐ray scattering (USAXS), SEM, and optical microscopy. The morphological scaling of these materials in the micron scale was very similar to that of polymers in the nanometer scale. In some fiber mats, such as GMF, the structure is randomized at the time of formation, leading to a statistical analogy with the thermal randomization that occurs in nanometer‐scale, high polymers. Analogues for the coil radius‐of‐gyration, persistence unit, and scaling regimes exist in such fiber mats and may be a useful feature both for modeling thermally equilibrated polymeric systems, as well as furthering the understanding of the physical properties of fiber mats through analogy with the theoretical understanding of thermally equilibrated polymeric systems. © 1998 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. J Polym Sci B: Polym Phys 36: 3147–3154, 1998

Probing the Melting Behavior of a Homogeneous Ethylene/1-Hexene Copolymer by Small-Angle Light Scattering

“…Scattering measurements provide a means to quantify the fractions and sizes of morphological units. − Extensive small-angle X-ray scattering (SAXS) studies have been conducted to follow structural changes during crystallization and melting of EOCs. ,,− These studies have demonstrated the importance of SAXS for understanding thermodynamic and kinetic factors affecting the development the lamellar (nanoscale) morphology of semicrystalline polymers. Scattering data at very small angles, possible with ultra small-angle X-ray scattering or small-angle light scattering (SALS), is necessary to investigate the spatial arrangement of micrometer crystalline aggregates or superstructures. Some recent studies ,− have demonstrated that time-resolved, polarization dependent SALS is very sensitive to micrometer scale density and orientation fluctuations arising during polymer crystallization.…”