Book Review: Applied Polymer Rheology

by | Aug 15, 2012

Manfred Wilhelm and Roland Kadar of KIT review Applied Polymer Rheology: Polymeric Fluids with Industrial Applications edited by Marianna Kontopoulou.
Marianna Kontopoulou (Editor)
Hardcover
368 pages
US $125.00
 

Reviewed by Professor Manfred Wilhelm and Dr. Roland Kadar, Karlsruhe Insitute of Technology

The book is focused on the industrial applications of polymer rheology and consists of a compact yet comprehensive collection of advanced topics written by some of the specialists in the field. Complex materials in equally complex flows (processing) are analyzed for materials of great commercial and technological interest. The topics revolve around the fundamental understanding of the relation between processability and the rheological properties of polymeric fluids with industrial applications.

The collection is divided into 11 chapters each being prepared by the contributors. These chapters blend fundamental notions as well as theoretical and experimental details regarding the materials and phenomena detailed. The first chapter introduces the basic concepts related to the rheology of polymeric materials. Chapter 2 is straightforward dedicated to a specialized topic, namely the importance of polymer additives for the control of instabilities/surface defects that can result through polymer processing. Specific solutions are described for a variety of polymeric materials and processing conditions. Chapter 3 concentrates on the effects of branching on the rheological behavior and processability, including the numerical modeling and examples of appropriate constitutive relations thereof. In chapter 4 the rheological behavior of polymers in relation to the microstructure of fibers suspensions in presented. Lightweight polymeric materials obtained through the dispersion of nanoparticles is the subject of chapter 5. Preparation methods for nanoparticle dispersion and the ensuing rheological behavior are elaborated. Wood-plastics composited are discussed in chapter 6 in the context of stability, related problems also presented in chapter 2, specific on this class of complex materials. Chapter 7 analyzes the behavior of block copolymers subject to simple and complex flows and some subsequent orientation/deorientation transitions. In chapter 8 the interplay between chemistry and flow in reactive systems that involve a strong changes in rheological properties during processing is discussed. Chapter 9 discusses the rheological properties of thermotropic liquid crystalline polymers and the blends and composites thereof. The rheological behavior of electrorheological fluids is explained and presented in chapter 10. In chapter 11 the chemical, physical, prerequisites for processing and the flow patterns observed in the context of the characteristic independent variables of polytetrafluorethylene paste is analyzed.

Overall, the text is written for a more specialized audience with specific questions. It is a reliable source of information for understanding the complex underlying mechanisms at play during polymer processing. Basic knowledge of rheology and rheometry is a prerequisite for understanding the text. The book addresses mostly to post-graduates or people working already in industry and will prove to be a valuable workbook for scientists involved in specific polymer science and engineering rheology, both on the academic and industrial side.

Related posts: