Modelling the hydrogen-bonding interactions in a copolymer/biodegradable homopolymer blend through excess functions

A recent theoretical approach based on the coupling of both the Flory-Huggins (FH) and the Association Equilibria thermodynamic (AET) theories was modified and adapted to study the miscibility properties of a multicomponent system formed by two polymers (a proton-donor and a proton-acceptor) and a proton-acceptor solvent, named copolymer(A)/solvent(B)/polymer(C). Compatibility between polymers was mainly attained by hydrogenbonding between the hydroxyl group on the phenol unit of the poly(styrene- co -vinyl phenol) (PSVPh) and the carbonyl group of the biodegradable and environmentally friendly poly(3-hydroxybutyrate) (PHB). However, the self-association of PSVPh and specific interactions between the PSVPh and the H-acceptor group (an ether oxygen atom) of the epichlorohydrin (ECH) solvent were also established in a lower extension, which competed with the polymer-polymer association. All the binary specific interactions and their dependence with the system composition as well as with the copolymer content were evaluated and quantified by means of two excess functions of the Gibbs free energy, Δg AB and Δg AC . Experimental results from fluorescence spectroscopy were consistent with the theoretical simulations derived with the model, which could also be applied and extended to predict the miscibility in solution of any polymer blend with specific interactions.