Academic Journal

A mesoscopic model for the rheology of dilute and semidilute solutions of wormlike micelles

Λεπτομέρειες βιβλιογραφικής εγγραφής
Τίτλος: A mesoscopic model for the rheology of dilute and semidilute solutions of wormlike micelles
Συγγραφείς: Avishek Kumar, Rico F. Tabor, P. Sunthar, J. Ravi Prakash
Πηγή: Journal of Rheology. 69:873-903
Publication Status: Preprint
Στοιχεία εκδότη: Society of Rheology, 2025.
Έτος έκδοσης: 2025
Θεματικοί όροι: Soft Condensed Matter, Statistical Mechanics (cond-mat.stat-mech), Soft Condensed Matter (cond-mat.soft), FOS: Physical sciences, Statistical Mechanics
Περιγραφή: The concept of a “persistent worm” is introduced, representing the smallest possible length of a wormlike micelle, and modelled by a bead-spring chain with sticky beads at the ends. Persistent worms are allowed to combine with each other at their sticky ends to form wormlike micelles with a distribution of lengths, and the semiflexibility of a wormlike micelle is captured with a bending potential between springs, both within and across persistent worms that stick to each other. Multiparticle Brownian dynamics simulations of such polydisperse and “polyflexible” wormlike micelles, with hydrodynamic interactions included and coupled with reversible scission/fusion of persistent worms, are used to investigate the static and dynamic properties of wormlike micellar solutions in the dilute and unentangled semidilute concentration regimes. The influence of the sticker energy and persistent worm concentration is examined, and simulations are shown to validate theoretical mean-field predictions of the universal scaling with concentration of the chain length distribution of linear wormlike micelles, independent of the sticker energy. The presence of wormlike micelles that form rings is shown not to affect the static properties of linear wormlike micelles, and mean-field predictions of ring length distributions are validated. Linear viscoelastic storage and loss moduli are computed, and the unique features in the intermediate frequency regime compared to those of homopolymer solutions are highlighted. The inclusion of hydrodynamic interactions enables the distinction between Rouse and Zimm dynamics in wormlike micelle solutions to be elucidated. While the neglect of hydrodynamic interactions is justified in the case of entangled wormlike micelle solutions, here the scaled concentration c/c∗ at which the onset of the screening of hydrodynamic interactions occurs with increasing concentration, as a function of the scission energy, is clearly identified.
Τύπος εγγράφου: Article
Γλώσσα: English
ISSN: 1520-8516
0148-6055
DOI: 10.1122/8.0001030
DOI: 10.48550/arxiv.2504.08354
Σύνδεσμος πρόσβασης: http://arxiv.org/abs/2504.08354
Rights: CC BY NC ND
Αριθμός Καταχώρησης: edsair.doi.dedup.....7fc834d253758247279d6fe30f1cffe2
Βάση Δεδομένων: OpenAIRE
Περιγραφή
ISSN:15208516
01486055
DOI:10.1122/8.0001030