Abstract
Elastic instabilities of entangled polymer melts are common in industrial processes but the physics responsible is not well understood. We present a numerical linear stability study of a molecular based constitutive model which grants us physical insight into the underlying mechanics involved. Two constriction flows are considered - one shear dominated, the other extension dominated - and two distinct instabilities are found. The influence of the molecular structure and the behaviour of the polymer dynamics are investigated and in both cases chain relaxation and orientation play a crucial role. This suggests a molecular-based physical interpretation of the underlying mechanisms responsible for flow instabilities. © 2013 Elsevier B.V.
| Original language | English (US) |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 77-87 |
| Number of pages | 11 |
| Journal | Journal of Non-Newtonian Fluid Mechanics |
| Volume | 195 |
| DOIs | |
| State | Published - May 2013 |
| Externally published | Yes |
Bibliographical note
KAUST Repository Item: Exported on 2020-10-01Acknowledged KAUST grant number(s): KUK-C1-013-04
Acknowledgements: We would like to think Dr Mehmet Sahin and Dr Ian Griffiths for their helpful advice and discussions. We would also like to thank the anonymous referees for their pertinent comments which helped improve the quality of this article. This work was funded through the Microscale Polymer Processing project (mu PP2), EPSRC GR/T11807/01. This publication was based on work supported in part by Award No KUK-C1-013-04, made by King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST).
This publication acknowledges KAUST support, but has no KAUST affiliated authors.