Polymer Bulletin, Vol.70, No.4, 1457-1464, 2013
Molecular dynamics computer simulation of scratch resistance testing of polymers: visualization
Experimental scratch resistance testing provides two numbers: the penetration depth R (p) and the healing depth R (h). In molecular dynamics computer simulations, we create a material consisting of N statistical chain segments by polymerization; a reinforcing phase can be included. Then we simulate the movement of an indenter and response of the segments during X time steps. Each segment at each time step has three Cartesian coordinates of position and three of momentum. We describe methods of visualization of results based on a record of 6NX coordinates. We obtain a continuous dependence on time t of positions of each of the segments on the path of the indenter. Scratch resistance at a given location can be connected to spatial structures of individual polymeric chains.