Nonlinear rheology of model comb polymers

We measure the stress relaxation of linear comb polymer solutions, after a large amplitude step shear strain. We apply the time-temperature superposition principle in order to construct stress relaxation master curves that span many orders of magnitude in time and cover the entire comb relaxation from early branch retraction to backbone reptation. We find evidence of distinct relaxation processes and dynamic tube dilation that can be attributed to the architectural features of the polymer. (C) 2009 The Society of Rheology. [DOI: 10.1122/1.3191781]