Structural changes in the ordering processes of macromolecular compounds

Abstract

In order to clarify the microscopically-viewed relationship between the conformational ordering process and the aggregation process of the macromolecular chains in the phase transitions from melt to solid or from solution to gel, the time-resolved Fourier-transform infrared spectra and small-angle X-ray or neutron scattering data have been analyzed in an organized manner. Two concrete examples were presented. (1) In the gelation phenomenon of syndiotactic polystyrene-organic solvent system, the ordered TTGG conformation is formed and develops with time. This conformational ordering is accelerated by the aggregation of these chain segments, resulting in the formation of macroscopic gel network. (2) In the isothermal crystallization process from the melt of polyethylene, the following ordering mechanism was revealed. The conformationally-disordered short trans conformers appear at first in the random coils of the melt. These disordered trans sequences grow to longer and more regular trans sequences of the orthorhombic-type crystal and then the isolated lamellae are formed. Afterwards, the stacked lamellar structure is developed without change of lamellar thickness but with small decrease in the long period, indicating an insertion of new lamellae between the already produced lamellar layers.