Primitive Chain Network Simulations for Branched Polymers

Yuichi Masubuchi, Giovanni Ianniruberto, Francesco Greco, Giuseppe Marrucci

Tokyo University of Technology and University of Naples
 

We present simulations of branched polymer dynamics based on a sliplink network model, which also accounts for topological change around branch points. It is well known that, with the exception of stars, branched polymers may show a peculiar rheological behavior due to the exceptionally slow relaxation of the backbone chains bridging branch points. Though Brownian simulations based on sliplinks are a powerful tool to study motion of polymers and to predict rheological properties, relaxation of the bridge chains in multibranched structures remains an open problem, due to lack of a definite rule for network topology rearrangement around branch points. We here introduce a branch point mobility rule into our primitive chain network model. For both star and H-shaped polymers, diffusion was simulated both with and without the new rule, and the linear relaxation modulus was determined.