Abstract
Our previous finding that high molecular weight polymers in certain systems can be transported with an unexpectedly high apparent ‘diffusion’ rate in the presence of a concentrated second polymer has been shown to be due to the formation and movement of organized macroscopic structures in an otherwise convection-free solution. The structures are not formed as part of a normal phase separation but will dissipate with time. Their formation may be understood by recently developed principles of nonlinear nonequilibrium thermodynamics.
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Preston, B., Laurent, T., Comper, W. et al. Rapid polymer transport in concentrated solutions through the formation of ordered structures. Nature 287, 499–503 (1980). https://doi.org/10.1038/287499a0
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/287499a0
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