The Role of Molecular Forces in the Mechanism of Swelling of High Polymers. II. Kinetics of Swelling

Abstract

Abstract 1. The rate of swelling of high-molecular compounds is a function of the chemical nature and geometric structure of the components of the mixture. 2. In an investigation of the molecular mechanism of swelling of high polymers having highly developed spatial structures, theoretical variations of the rate of swelling with the degree of swelling and molecular characteristics of the components of the mixture were derived for cases where the limiting rate is that of three-dimensional deformation of the specimen in the swelling process, and for the case where the slowest process is the diffusion penetration of the solvent. 3. It is shown that, in both the above-mentioned cases, the rate of swelling depends essentially on the values of the specific cohesion energies of the components of the mixture.