An overview is given of theory and experiments on liquid crystal phases which appear in solutions of elongated colloidal particles or stiff polymers. The Onsager (1949) virial thecry for the isotropionematic transition of thin rodlike particles is treated comprehensively along with extensions to polydisperse solutions and soft interactions. Computer simulations of liquid crystal phases in hard particle fluids are summarized and used to assess the quality of statistical mechanical thwries for stiff panicles at higher dume haion-like the inclusion of higher Virial coefficients, yexpansion, scaled particle theory and density functional theory. Both computer simulations and density functional theory indicate formation of more highly ordered smectic phases. The range of experimental applicability h strongly widened by the extension of the viriai theory to wormlike chains by Khokhlov and Semenov (1981, 1982). Fmally, experimental results for a number of carefully studied, charged and uncharged colloids and polymers are summarized and wmpared to theoretical results. IE many cases the agreement is semi-quantitative.

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Phase transitions in lyotropic colloidal and polymer liquid crystals

Phase transitions in liquid crystals

This paper reviews the literature of polymer blends containing low and high molar mass liquid crystals. Low molar mass liquid crystals have been used as plasticizers for thermoplastic polymers and in applications such as electro-optics, optical recording media, and membranes. High molar mass liquid crystalline polymers have been primarily used in polymer blends as processing aids and as an incipient reinforcing phase for “self-reinforced” materials. This review discusses the phase behavior, rheology, and mechanical properties of these blends.

Polymer Blends Containing Liquid Crystals: A Review

The orientational ordering in the solution of long persistent macromolecules is studied by means of the Onsager method. It is shown that the liquid-crystalline transition occurs at significantly higher concentrations and that the order parameter at the transition point is much smaller than for the model of freely-jointed segments. It is concluded that the orientational ordering in the solutions of semiflexible chains depends essentially on the flexibility distribution along the chain contour.

Liquid-crystalline ordering in the solution of long persistent chains

http://csmres.co.uk/cs.public.upd/article-downloads/pasquali.pdf

Randall S. Frost

Papers

Statistical Thermodynamics of Mixtures of Rodlike Particles. 3. The Most Probable Distribution

Statistical Thermodynamics of Mixtures of Rodlike Particles. 4. The Poisson Distribution

Statistical thermodynamics of mixtures of rodlike particles. Surface tension and the most probable distribution

Surface tension of mixtures of rodlike particles: monomer effects