Paper Number
SG5 

Session
Solids and Glasses

Title
Various aspects of brittle and ductile behavior of different polymer glasses

Presentation Date and Time
October 8, 2014 (Wednesday) 3:10

Track / Room
Track 5 / Washington B

Authors (Click on name to view author profile)

1. Li, Xiaoxiao (University of Akron)
2. Wang, Shi-Qing (University of Akron)

Author and Affiliation Lines (in printed abstract book)
Xiaoxiao Li and Shi-Qing Wang
University of Akron, Akron, OH 44325

Speaker / Presenter 
Li, Xiaoxiao

Text of Abstract
Although brittle-ductile transition (BDT) in polymer glasses has been studied extensively in the past, our understanding of the BDT is rather limited at a molecular level. Our recently proposed molecular model [1] for yielding and failure of polymer glasses in large deformation is the first of its kind, capable of rationalizing various aspects of the BDT. This work studies additional features associated with the BDT. Our experiments reveal remarkable differences between PMMA and other brittle glasses such as PS and SAN. For example, at the same temperature the more ductile PMMA shows brittle failure whereas PS and SAN are ductile at comparable rates of extension. [1] "A phenomenological molecular model for brittle-ductile transition and yielding of polymer glasses", S. Q. Wang, S. W. Cheng, P. P. Lin and X. X. Li, J. Chem. Phys., to be published (2014).