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Constitutive modeling of polymeric gels

Shawn Chester (New Jersey Institute of Tech)

Soft Materials and Structures

Wed 9:00 - 10:30

Barus-Holley 158

A polymeric gel is a cross-linked polymer network swollen with a solvent. We have developed a continuum-level theory to describe the coupled mechanical deformation and fluid permeation of responsive gels. In discussing special constitutive equations we limit our attention to isotropic materials, and consider a model based on a Flory-Huggins model for the free energy change due to mixing of the fluid with the polymer network, coupled with a non-Gaussian statistical-mechanical model for the change in configurational entropy --- a model which accounts for the limited extensibility of polymer chains. We compare our theory with simple uniaxial experiments from the literature in the special case where fluid permeation is not significant. We show the theory is capable of more complex phenomena such as swelling, squeezing of fluid by applied mechanical forces, and thermally-responsive swelling/de-swelling of such materials. We finish with prospects of our own experimental program to inform constitutive models.