Monte Carlo simulation of two interpenetrating polymer networks: Structure, swelling, and mechanical properties

The swelling and mechanical properties of various interpenetrating polymer networks (IPNs) were studied. Six networks made from permutations of a moderately crosslinked polyelectrolyte network (ref), a moderately crosslinked neutral polymer network (net1), and a highly crosslinked polyelectrolyte network (net2) were first swollen in water and structural properties such as end-to-end chain lengths and radial distribution functions were compared with the component networks' equilibrium properties. The swelling of composite IPNs was discussed in terms of a balance between the osmotic pressure due to mobile counterions and the restoring force of the network chains, which act in parallel to counteract the osmotic swelling. For the ref-net2 system, the strong stretching of net2 chains increases the network restoring force and the further swelling due to the counterions is suppressed. The swollen networks were then uniaxially stretched, and equilibrium stress-strain plots were obtained up to high extension ratios. The equilibrium volume decreased upon uniaxial extension, and the elastic moduli of IPNs of the A-A type were slightly greater than that of their respective single networks.