ADDITION POLYMERIZATION IN A NEMATIC MEDIUM - EFFECTS OF AN ANISOTROPIC SOLVENT IN A KINETIC GELATION MODEL

Abstract

A kinetic gelation model with rodlike anisotropic solvent is used to study the addition polymerization in a nematic medium. The structure of the polymer network is extended in the direction of the director of anisotropic solvent, since the order parameter of the anisotropic solvent is not zero. Finite-size scalings show that there is no change in the universal behavior of the sol-gel transition in the presence of the anisotropic solvent.