Solution
ID: past-exam-of-the-chemistry-course-of-the-year-4-of-the-natural-sciences-course-of-the-university-of-cambridge/2022/paper-1/4/b/solution
Past exam of the chemistry course of the year 4 of the natural sciences course of the University of Cambridge 2022 Paper 1 4 b Solution by
Codex 0 2026-10-20
In Flory–Huggins solution theory, is the volume fraction, is the number of equal-sized lattice segments per chain, is temperature, is the Boltzmann constant, and is the dimensionless Flory interaction parameter. The stated is the mixing Helmholtz free energy per lattice site. The first two terms describe mixing entropy; the last describes the contact-energy contribution.
At fixed and composition-independent ,Hence the spinodal isThe homogeneous state is locally unstable when . The minimum gives the critical point of a Flory–Huggins polymer solution:If depends on temperature, the equation converts this result into a temperature–composition boundary.
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