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We employ Brownian dynamics simulations combined with forward flux sampling and theoretical first-passage time analyses to describe the rates of transitions between loops and bridges of telechelic polymers between solid surfaces representing e.g. latex colloids in the limit that the telechelic stickers bind strongly enough to the surfaces to make free chains very rare. It is shown that the bridge formation rate can be expressed by combining times for two processes, namely, the escape of one end sticker from the narrow-but-deep association well near the colloidal surface and the longer-range motion of the chain end to the other surface inhibited by stretching free energy. We find that when using multibead chains to represent the telechelic polymers, the longer-range motion requires use of a multidimensional first passage time analysis that we borrow from the work of Likhtman and co-workers, which was originally developed to describe polymer end fluctuations in a one-dimensional reptation tube. From these ingredients, we develop analytical expressions for the loop-to-bridge and bridge-to-loop transition rates as functions of the number of beads per polymer, the ratio of gap to the equilibrium chain length, and the end sticker association energy to the colloids/surfaces. We also suggest that a 20-to-1 mapping of Kuhn steps to springs may allow the analysis to be applied to real chains, rendering the analysis applicable to a broad range of industrial and biological processes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We developed a novel hybrid population balance-Brownian dynamics (Pop-BD) simulation technique to investigate the phase behavior and linear viscoelastic response of suspensions of colloids bridged reversibly by telechelic polymers such as latex particles bridged by polyethylene oxide urethanes. The Pop-BD method couples the solution of a set of population balance equations of the bridge-to-loop exchange kinetics of the telechelic polymer chains on the latex particles with Brownian dynamics simulations governing the dynamics of the latex particles. Two relaxation times are identified, corresponding to bridge association/dissociation from the latex particle and relaxation of the transient network of bridged particles. The relaxation modulus computed from the Pop-BD equations matches that for fully explicit BD simulations of both colloids and polymers at time scales equal to or greater than the polymer bridge relaxation time. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

ABSTRACT Recent experimental studies demonstrated that the aqueous methylcellulose (MC) polymer chains in water can form nanoscale fibrils (diameter ∼14 nm, persistence length ∼60 nm), and those fibrils can organize into networks at higher temperatures and/or concentrations, forming the commonly observed gel. Here we propose that the fibrils are one-dimensional self-assemblies of stacked, fused polymer rings that are formed at elevated temperatures due to the changing nature of the MC-water hydrogen bonding. This mechanism is analogous to the coil-helix transition in polypeptides, although it is not clear whether the MC fibrils possess chirality. We perform coarse-grained molecular simulations of MC chain structure at temperatures both above and below the hypothesized coil-to-ring transition, with CG forcefield tuned by atomistic molecular dynamics simulations, and observe the expected conformational change. We then develop a statistical mechanical theory to predict the fibril self-assembly, gelation and rheology as function of temperature and concentration. The findings are in reasonable agreement with experimental data and could be generalized to other carbohydrate polymers. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Polym. Sci., Part B: Polym. Phys. 2016, 54, 1624-1636 [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The hierarchical and “bob” (or branch-on-branch) models are tube-based computational models recently developed for predicting the linear rheology of general mixtures of polydisperse branched polymers. These two models are based on a similar tube-theory framework but differ in their numerical implementation and details of relaxation mechanisms. We present a detailed overview of the similarities and differences of these models and examine the effects of these differences on the predictions of the linear viscoelastic properties of a set of representative branched polymer samples in order to give a general picture of the performance of these models. Our analysis confirms that the hierarchical and bob models quantitatively predict the linear rheology of a wide range of branched polymer melts but also indicate that there is still no unique solution to cover all types of branched polymers without case-by-case adjustment of parameters such as the dilution exponent α and the factor p2 which defines the hopping distance of a branch point relative to the tube diameter. An updated version of the hierarchical model, which shows improved computational efficiency and refined relaxation mechanisms, is introduced and used in these analyses. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We develop a Brownian dynamics simulation method with full hydrodynamic interactions (HI) to study the recognition kinetics between two patterned colloidal spheres. We use a general resistance matrix (12*12) to describe both the far and near-field hydrodynamics of translation, rotation, and translation-rotation coupling between the two spheres, adopted from Jeffrey and Onishi [J. Fluid Mech. 139, 261 (1984)]. We apply the method to the specific binding of 'patchy' spheres, including effects of depletion attraction and orientation-specific binding, as are present in 'Janus' spheres whose surfaces contain hydrophobic and hydrophilic faces [Q. Chen, S. C. Bae, and S. Granick, Nature (London) 469, 381 (2011)]. The binding times obtained between two non-patterned spheres (of equal or unequal diameter) with or without HI extrapolated to infinite dilution are shown to be in good agreement with theoretical predictions of the Smoluchowski equation. In addition, the binding times for pairs of spheres for three cases of surface patterning of the two spheres (uniform-uniform, uniform-Janus, and Janus-Janus) are compared with or without rotational motion. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Control over the alignment of colloidal structures plays a crucial role in advanced reconfigurable materials. In this work, we study the alignment of Janus particle lamellar structures under shear flow via Brownian dynamics simulations. Lamellar alignment (orientation relative to flow direction) is measured as a function of the Péclet number (Pe)--the ratio of the viscous shear to the Brownian forces--the particle volume fraction, and the strength of the anisotropic interaction potential made dimensionless with thermal energy. Under conditions where lamellar structures are formed, three orientation regimes are observed: (1) random orientation for very small Pe, (2) parallel orientation--lamellae with their normals parallel to the direction of the velocity gradient--for intermediate values of Pe, and (3) perpendicular orientation--lamellae with their normals parallel to the vorticity direction--for large Pe. To understand the alignment mechanism, we carry out a scaling analysis of competing torques between a pair of particles in the lamellar structure. Our results suggest that the change of parallel to perpendicular orientation is independent of the particle volume fraction and is caused by the hydrodynamic and Brownian torques on the particles overcoming the torques resulting from the interparticle interactions. This initial study of shear-induced alignment on lamellar structures formed by Janus colloidal particles also opens the door for future applications where a reversible actuator for structure orientation is required. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We investigate the kinetics of colloidal lock and key particle assembly by modeling transitions between free, non-specifically and specifically (dumbbells) bound pairs to enable the rapid formation of specific pairs. We expand on a model introduced in a previous publication (Colón-Meléndez et al., 2015) to account for the shape complementarity between the lock and the key particle. Specifically we develop a theory to predict free energy differences between specific and non-specific states based on the interaction potential between arbitrary surfaces and apply this to the interaction of a spherical key particle with the concave dimple surface. Our results show that a lock particle dimple slightly wider than the key particle radius results in optimal binding, but also show escape rates much smaller than those observed in experimental measurements described in the paper cited above. We assess the possible sources of error in experiments and in analysis, including spatial and temporal resolution of the confocal microscopy method used to measure kinetic coefficients, the polydispersity of the lock dimple size, and the sedimentation of the particles in a quasi-two-dimensional layer. We find that the largest sources of variation are in the limited temporal resolution of the experiments, which we account for in our theory, and in the quasi-two-dimensional nature of the experiment that leads to misidentification of non-specific pairs as specific ones. Accounting for these sources of variation results in very good quantitative agreement with experimental data. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To assess the role of particle roughness in the rheological phenomena of concentrated colloidal suspensions, we develop model colloids with varying surface roughness length scales up to 10% of the particle radius. Increasing surface roughness shifts the onset of both shear thickening and dilatancy towards lower volume fractions and critical stresses. Experimental data are supported by computer simulations of spherical colloids with adjustable friction coefficients, demonstrating that a reduction in the onset stress of thickening and a sign change in the first normal stresses occur when friction competes with lubrication. In the quasi-Newtonian flow regime, roughness increases the effective packing fraction of colloids. As the shear stress increases and suspensions of rough colloids approach jamming, the first normal stresses switch signs and the critical force required to generate contacts is drastically reduced. This is likely a signature of the lubrication films giving way to roughness-induced tangential interactions that bring about load-bearing contacts in the compression axis of flow. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]