Polymerizing Liquids: Structure, Thermodynamics, and Transport

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Professor Sandra Greer is supported by a grant from the Experimental Physical Chemistry Program to study the density, heat capacity and phase equilibria of polymerizing liquids; she will also be testing a number of theoretical models that may be applicable to them. This work will help us to understand how and why polymerization occurs ultimately allowing us to design and produce better plastics, synthetic oils and clothing materials. Greer is pursuing a two pronged attack to find out firstly, if certain theoretical models that have been proposed do in fact correctly predict the behavior of reversible polymerization. These systems often refered to as "living polymers" because the polymer-monomer equilbrium can be reversibly shifted by temperature changes; thus, mimicking chemical equilbrium behavior. Secondly, Greer will examine the concept of Wheeler et al. that the static properties (density and heat capacity) can, in fact, be treated as critical phenomena. Moreover, Greer hopes to see whether or not the theories used to predict and describe phase transitions in magnets can also be used to describe her "living polymer" systems' reversible equilibria properties.