Complexation of Charged Polymers: From Coacervates to Polymeric Ionic Liquids and Plastic Waste

This talk will discuss the basic physics of charge complexation in polymers, leading for example to complex coacervation in aqueous mixtures of oppositely charged polyelectrolytes and self-coacervation of polyampholyte solutions. In the dry state, electrostatically-induced microphase separation is predicted when blending oppositely charged polymeric ionic liquids. The symmetry and domain period of such mesostructures are tunable by varying salt concentration, charge densities, stoichiometry, and dielectric contrast. I will discuss field theory models of such systems, and SCFT (mean-field) and FTS (exact) simulations that have elucidated some of their essential physics. Finally I will speculate on whether electrostatic interactions can be used to compatibilize and upcycle plastic waste streams.