(189ab) Effect of Interactions on Nanoparticle Dispersion in a Polymer Solution

Addition of nanosized particles to a polymer solution/matrix can lead to new and improved properties over conventional composites using larger filler particles. Various factors, including size of nanoparticles, nanoparticle-polymer interaction, polymer chain length, and relative volume fractions, affect the dispersion of nanoparticles in the polymer matrix. The objective of this study is to investigate the influence of nanoparticle-polymer interactions on the overall dispersion behavior using Brownian dynamic simulations. The shape of the nanoparticles was considered to be spherical and the polymer architecture was modeled as bead rod chains. The degree of dispersion and agglomeration in the system were characterized by mean square displacement.