Hybrid methodologies for accelerating innovation in multicomponent polymer blends

The phase diagrams of complex fluids are essential for understanding solubility and miscibility, properties of critical importance in polymer formulation. EO/PO copolymers are an integral component of many polyurethane foams; the compatibility of these materials can determine usability at various manufacturers. Thus, understanding the miscibility or shelf-stability of a multicomponent polymer blend becomes a key driver. At a resolution of 10 wt%, exhaustive exploration of a ternary phase diagram requires simulation or experimentation at 63 composition points, which grows exponentially with the number of components. Using high throughput research, we demonstrate a methodology to evaluate hybrid experimental and computational methods to build phase diagrams for these complex mixtures. This approach is further coupled with optimization algorithms to enable demonstration of enhanced efficiencies in generating two-phase ternary diagrams. The result is a workflow that allows new materials to be consistently and reproducibly evaluated for exploration of formulations across a broad design space.