Issue 7, 1977

Effects of excluded volume on the conformation of adsorbed polymers

Abstract

We consider adsorption of a polymer from solution onto a planar interface. The self-consistent mean field method due to Edwards is used to handle excluded volume effects, and segment adsorption is treated by introducing a short range attractive potential between each segment and the adsorbing surface. In the limit where the adsorbed segment density is uniform, so that the self-consistent method is valid, an analytic solution is obtained. To first order in the excluded volume parameter, v, we find that the critical segment free energy of adsorption necessary for an adsorbed layer is ϕc=ϕ°c(1 +6nvz0//l2+…) where ϕ°c is the critical segment free energy of adsorption at the θ point, n is the total number of adsorbed segments per unit area, l is the polymer bond length and z0(∼l) is the range of the adsorption potential. The mean adsorbed layer thickness t([double greater-than, compressed]z0) is t=t0(1 +6nvt0)//l2 where t0 is the mean adsorbed thickness at the θ point. The number of polymers adsorbed per unit area, C=C(1–kN2vC°) where N is the number of segments per polymer chain (n=NC) and C° is the value at the θ point. Both C° and k depend on the free energy of adsorption [cf. eqn (6) and (48)].

Article information

Article type
Paper

J. Chem. Soc., Faraday Trans. 2, 1977,73, 1062-1070

Effects of excluded volume on the conformation of adsorbed polymers

I. S. Jones and P. Richmond, J. Chem. Soc., Faraday Trans. 2, 1977, 73, 1062 DOI: 10.1039/F29777301062

To request permission to reproduce material from this article, please go to the Copyright Clearance Center request page.

If you are an author contributing to an RSC publication, you do not need to request permission provided correct acknowledgement is given.

If you are the author of this article, you do not need to request permission to reproduce figures and diagrams provided correct acknowledgement is given. If you want to reproduce the whole article in a third-party publication (excluding your thesis/dissertation for which permission is not required) please go to the Copyright Clearance Center request page.

Read more about how to correctly acknowledge RSC content.

Spotlight

Advertisements