Dynamics of polymer nanocomposites at large deformation

This work investigates the dynamics and mechanical properties of polymer nanocomposites (PNCs) at large deformation through a combination of small-angle x-ray scattering and rheology. Small-angle x-ray scattering showed clear evidence of the mismatch between the positional rearrangement of nanoparticles at the nanoscale and the macroscopic applied deformation field. The rheological measurements through uniaxial extension showed that PNCs and the neat matrix polymer share almost identical scaling between the overshoot stress and the deformation rates over an exceptionally wide range of stress and deformation rate, indicating negligible influences of the nanoparticles to the disentanglement dynamics. We explain these observations through the hydrodynamic effect of nanoparticles.