Application of Topological Modeling in Studying Rheology and Morphology of Polymers

Some features of the rheological behavior and morphology of systems which contain liquid crystalline polymers are considered from the standpoint of the theory of catastrophes. It is noted that a decrease in the mixing time of melts of polysulfone mixtures, including a liquid crystal component, significantly changes the configuration of the rheological curves and the morphology of the flow. It was found that the appearance of characteristic N -shaped breaks on the rheological curves of such mixtures is informatively described and analyzed on the basis of the standard «fold» model. It was revealed that the concentration dependences of the viscosity of poly- p -benzamide samples of various molecular weights have a «cusp»-type feature inherent in the projection of a «ruffle» type catastrophe on the plane of control parameters. The possibility of a visual illustration of the general picture of the transition of these solutions into the liquid-crystalline state on the basis of this canonical model was shown.