Effect of temperature gradient on polymer migration

Polymer migration in a flow field is a well-known phenomenon, and it has be en verified that the sources of such phenomena are nonhomogeneity of the fl ow field, concentration effects, and hydrodynamic interactions between the polymer molecules and walls. In this study, we investigate the temperature gradient effect on polymer dynamics due to an imposed flow field. The diffu sion equation and concentration profile of the polymer molecules induced by a temperature gradient using a two-bead dumbbell model are obtained from t he Fokker-Planck equation. From the concentration equation constructed for a dilute solution in a general flow geometry, we find that there are signif icant effects on the polymer migration not only due to the nonhomogeneity o f the flow field, but also due to temperature gradients.