Education:
- The University of Akron – OH – USA (Ph.D. Polymer Science 2021-Present).
- Amir Kabir University of Technology – Tehran – Iran (M.Sc. Polymer Engineering 2014-2017).
- University of Tehran – Tehran – Iran (B.Sc. Polymer Engineering 2009-2014).
Research Statement:
Microscopic dynamics and rheology of ionomers
Ionomers are polymers in which ionized groups create ionic crosslinks in the intermolecular structure. They are composed of both neutral and ionized repeat units covalently bonded to the polymer backbone as pendant group moieties. They have long attracted attention due to the physical properties associated with the ions (e.g., conductivity, glass transition, and dynamic bonding) and their interactions with other chemical species (i.e., solvent, salts, and non-ionic repeat units). The primary effects of ionic functionalization of a polymer are to increase the glass transition temperature, melt viscosity, and characteristic relaxation times. Polymer microstructure is also affected, and it is generally agreed that in most ionomers, microphase-separated, ion-rich aggregates form as a result of strong ion–dipole attractions. The major effect of the ionic aggregate was to increase the relaxation processes. This in turn increases the melt viscosity and is responsible for the network-like behavior of ionomers above the glass transition temperature. Coarse-grained MD simulations are used in this project to connect their molecular structure to their macroscopic rheology. In this work, we create ionomer structures with different architectures and study the network formation at different degrees of electrostatic interactions.
Publications:
- Razavi, M., Sadeghi, N., Jafari, S.H. et al. Thermo-rheological probe of microstructural evolution and degradation pathway in the flame-retarded PP/EVA/NOR/clay nanocomposites. Rheol Acta 61, 25–47 (2022).
- Aqueous Based Paste for Fabrication of Mesoporous Composite-Anatase Rutile TiO2 Nanoparticle Thin Film, N. Sadeghi et. al., ISPST 2016, Tehran, Iran. (Oral presentation).
- Polymer concrete insulator: optimization of the formulation and evaluation of electrical and mechanical properties, N. Sadeghi et. al., Industrial report.