Rheological studies of alkylamine-ethylene glycol organogel: Chain length dependent structural diversity

• Systematic rheological investigation on alkylamine-ethylene glycol organogel was conducted.
• Scaling laws of elasticity vs concentration was used to infer the structural features.
• Growth mechanism of newly born fibers is controlled by supersaturation.

A systematic rheological study is undertaken to investigate the viscoelastic behaviors of alkylamine-ethylene glycol organogels. Microstructures and resulting mechanical properties are thus studied in the functions of temperature, chain length and concentration of the alkylamine. A model based on scaling laws of shear elasticity versus concentration is employed to describe the structural features of the gels. According to the supersaturation principle, a gradual structural change from lamellar/fibrillar to spherulitic/polyhedral network can be accounted when the chain length of alkylamine is increased from 12 to 18.

Formation of the topological networks based on the styles of branching.Figure optionsDownload as PowerPoint slide