Theoretical and computational modeling of self-oscillating polymer gels

The authors model wave propagation in swollen, chemoresponsive polymer gels that are undergoing the oscillatory Belousov-Zhabotinsky (BZ) reaction. To carry out this study, they first modify the Oregonator model for BZ reactions in simple solutions to include the effect of the polymer on the reaction kinetics. They then describe the gel dynamics through the framework of the two-fluid model. The polymer-solvent interactions that are introduced through the BZ reaction are captured through a coupling term, which is added to the Flory-Huggins model for polymer-solvent mixtures. The resulting theoretical model is then used to develop the gel lattice spring model (gLSM), which is a computationally efficient approach for simulating large-scale, two-dimensional (2D) deformations and chemical reactions within a swollen polymer network. The 2D calculations allow the authors to probe not only volume changes but also changes in the sample’s shape. Using the gLSM, they determine the pattern formation and shape changes in 2D rectangular BZ gels that are anchored to a solid wall. They demonstrate that the dynamic patterns depend on whether the gel is expanded or contracted near the wall, and on the sample’s dimensions. Finally, they isolate a scenario where the detachment of the gel from the wall leads to macroscopic motion of the entire sample.