We study associating polymer gels under steady shear using Brownian dynamics simulation to explore the interplay between the network structure, dynamics, and rheology. For a wide range of flow rates, we observe the formation of shear bands with a pronounced difference in shear rate, concentration, and structure. A striking increase in the polymer pressure in the gradient direction with shear, along with the inherently large compressibility of the gels, is shown to be a crucial factor in destabilizing homogeneous flow through shear-gradient concentration coupling. We find that shear has only a modest influence on the degree of association, but induces marked spatial heterogeneity in the network connectivity. We attribute the increase in the polymer pressure (and polymer mobility) to this structural reorganization.

中文翻译：

---

剪切诱导的聚合物凝胶异质性：网络结构和剪胀性的作用。

我们使用布朗动力学模拟研究在稳定剪切下缔合的聚合物凝胶，以探索网络结构，动力学和流变学之间的相互作用。对于宽范围的流速，我们观察到剪切带的形成，剪切带，浓度和结构存在明显差异。随着剪切力的增加，聚合物压力在梯度方向上显着增加，以及凝胶固有的大的可压缩性，被证明是通过剪切梯度浓度耦合而使均相流不稳定的关键因素。我们发现剪切对关联度仅具有适度的影响，但会在网络连接性中引起明显的空间异质性。我们将聚合物压力（和聚合物迁移率）的增加归因于这种结构重组。