This revision of an introductory text examines Newtonian liquids and polymer fluid mechanics. It begins with a review of the main ideas of fluid dynamics as well as key points of Newtonian fluids.

This two-volume work is detailed enough to serve as a text and comprehensive enough to stand as a reference. Volume 1, Fluid Mechanics, summarizes the key experiments that show how polymeric fluids differ from structurally simple fluids, then presents, in rough historical order, various methods for solving polymer fluid dynamics problems. Volume 2, Kinetic Theory, uses molecular models and the methods of statistical mechanics to obtain relations between bulk flow behavior and polymer structure. Includes end-of-chapter problems and extensive appendixes.

This book consists of two strongly interweaved parts: the mathematical theory of stochastic processes and its applications to molecular theories of polymeric fluids. The comprehensive mathematical background provided in the first section will be equally useful in many other branches of engineering and the natural sciences. The second part provides readers with a more direct understanding of polymer dynamics, allowing them to identify exactly solvable models more easily, and to develop efficient computer simulation algorithms in a straightforward manner. In view of the examples and applications to problems taken from the front line of science, this volume may be used both as a basic textbook or as a reference book. Program examples written in FORTRAN are available via ftp from ftp.springer.de/pub/chemistry/polysim/.

This book provides a comprehensive account of the modern theory for the dynamical properties of polymer solutions. The theory has undergone dramatic evolution over the last two decades due to the introduction of new methods and concepts that have extended the frontier of theory from dilute solutions in which polymers move independently to concentrated solutions where many polymers converge. Among the properties examined are viscoelasticity, diffusion, dynamic light scattering, and electric birefringence. Nonlinear viscoelasticity is discussed in detail on the basis of molecular dynamical models. The book bridges the gap between classical theory and new developments, creating a consistent picture of polymer solution dynamics over the entire concentration range.

Polymers exhibit a range of physical characteristics, from rubber-like elasticity to the glassy state. These particular properties are controlled at the molecular level by the mobility of the structural constituents. Remarkable changes in mobility can be witnessed with temperature, over narrow, well defined regions, termed relaxation processes. This is an important, unique phenomenon controlling polymer transition behaviour and is described here at an introductory level. The important types of relaxation processes from amorphous to crystalline polymers and polymeric miscible blends are covered, in conjunction with the broad spectrum of experimental methods used to study them. In-depth discussion of molecular level interpretation, including atomistic level computer simulations and applications to molecular mechanism elucidation, are discussed. The result is a self-contained approach to polymeric interpretation suitable for researchers in materials science, physics and chemistry interested in the relaxation processes of polymeric systems.

This book is a treatise on the thermodynamic and dynamic properties of thin liquid films at solid surfaces and, in particular, their rupture instabilities. For the quantitative study of these phenomena, polymer thin films (sometimes referred to as “ultrathin”) have proven to be an invaluable experimental model system. What is it that makes thin film instabilities special and interesting? First, thin polymeric films have an important range of applications. An understanding of their instabilities is therefore of practical relevance for the design of such films. The first chapter of the book intends to give a snapshot of current applications, and an outlook on promising future ones. Second, thin liquid films are an interdisciplinary research topic, which leads to a fairly heterogeneous community working on the topic. It justifies attempting to write a text which gives a coherent presentation of the field which researchers across their specialized communities might be interested in. Finally, thin liquid films are an interesting laboratory for a theorist to confront a well-established theory, hydrodynamics, with its limits. Thin films are therefore a field in which a highly fruitful exchange and collaboration exists between experimentalists and theorists. The book stretches from the more concrete to more abstract levels of study: we roughly progress from applications via theory and experiment to rigorous mathematical theory. For an experimental scientist, the book should serve as a reference and guide to what is the current consensus of the theoretical underpinnings of the field of thin film dynamics. Controversial problems on which such a consensus has not yet been reached are clearly indicated in the text, as well as discussed in a final chapter. From a theoretical point of view, the field of dewetting has mainly been treated in a mathematically ‘light’ yet elegant fashion, often making use of scaling arguments. For the untrained researcher, this approach is not always easy to follow. The present book attempts to bridge between the ‘light’ and the ‘rigorous’, always with the ambition to enhance insight and understanding - and to not let go the elegance of the theory.

Field-cycling NMR relaxometry is evolving into a methodology of widespread interest with recent technological developments resulting in powerful and versatile commercial instruments. Polymers, liquid crystals, biomaterials, porous media, tissue, cement and many other materials of practical importance can be studied using this technique. This book summarises the expertise of leading scientists in the area and the editor is well placed, after four decades of working in this field, to ensure a broad ranging and high quality title. Starting with an overview of the basic principles of the technique and the scope of its use, the content then develops to look at theory, instrumentation, practical limitations and applications in different systems. Newcomers to the field will find this book invaluable for successful use of the technique. Researchers already in academic and industrial settings, interested in molecular dynamics and magnetic resonance, will discover an important addition to the literature.

Explore polymer rheology from an industrial standpoint Presenting state-of-the-art polymer rheology as observed by well-recognized authors, Applied Polymer Rheology: Polymeric Fluids with Industrial Applications is designed to help readers understand the relationship between molecular structure and the flow behavior of polymers. In particular, it focuses on polymeric systems that elicit special attention from industry. Providing a comprehensive overview of the rheological characteristics of polymeric fluids, the book bridges the gap between theory and practice/application, enabling readers to see the connection between molecular structure and the behavior of the polymers studied. Beginning with a discussion of the properties, processability, and processing aids of specific polymers, later chapters examine filled polymers and composites, and the theoretical framework upon which their analysis is based. Various systems containing microstructure are presented subsequently, with the final chapter introducing paste extrusion of polytetrafluoroethylene paste. An invaluable reference guide that covers the literature and vast array of technical approaches to polymer rheology, Applied Polymer Rheology's coverage of polymeric fluids of interest to industry make it an essential resource for plastics, polymer, and chemical engineers, materials scientists, polymer chemists, and polymer physicists to use when interpreting findings and planning experiments.