Simulations of the Structure and Properties of the Polyethylene Crystal Surface

1995 ◽  
Vol 408 ◽  
Author(s):  
J. L. Wilhelmi ◽  
G. C. Rutledge

AbstractThe structures and thermodynamic properties of the (100), (010), and (110) lateral surfaces of extended-chain polyethylene crystals between 0 K and 300 K were determined by free energy minimization using consistent quasi-harmonic lattice dynamics. Slight rotations of the outermost chains from their corresponding orientations in the bulk were observed. These deviations from bulk structure were confined to the first three molecular layers (approximately 10 Å) at the surface. Surface free energy calculations found the (110) surface to be the most stable over the entire temperature range modeled, with free energies ranging from 95.4 erg/cm2 to 103.5 erg/cm2, at temperatures of 0 K and 300 K, respectively. Surface free energies of the (100) and (010) surfaces were found to be at least 15% higher than the (110) surface, with the (100) surface slightly more stable than the (010) surface, over all temperatures considered. Surface free energy increases as the density of chains at the surface decreases. The surface free energy at low temperatures was determined predominantly by intermolecular potential energy; at higher temperatures, excess entropy accounted for nearly half the surface free energy. Surface entropy was almost entirely due to lattice mode motions.

Materials ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 14 (11) ◽  
pp. 2716
Author(s):  
Aneta Liber-Kneć ◽  
Sylwia Łagan

The key goal of this study was to characterize surface properties of chosen dental materials on the base on the contact angle measurements and surface free energy calculations. Tested materials were incubated in the simulated oral environment and drinks to estimate an influence of conditions similar to those in the oral cavity on wetting and energetic state of the surface. Types of materials were as follows: denture acrylic resins, composite and PET-G dental retainer to compare basic materials used in a prosthetics, restorative dentistry and orthodontics. The sessile drop method was used to measure the contact angle with the use of several liquids. Values of the surface free energies were estimated based on the Owens–Wendt, van Oss–Chaudhury–Good and Zisman’s methods. The research showed that surface wetting depends on the material composition and storage conditions. The most significance changes of CA were observed for acrylic resins (84.7° ± 3.8° to 65.5° ± 3.5°) and composites (58.8° ± 4.1° to 49.1° ± 5.7°) stored in orange juice, and for retainers (81.9° ± 1.8° to 99.6° ± 4.5°) incubated in the saline solution. An analysis of the critical surface energy showed that acrylic materials are in the zone of good adhesion (values above 40 mJ/m2), while BIS-GMA composites are in the zone of poor adhesion (values below 30 mJ/m2). Study of the surface energy of different dental materials may contribute to the development of the thermodynamic model of bacterial adhesion, based on the surface free energies, and accelerate the investigation of biomaterial interaction in the biological environment.


2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Maximiliano Riquelme ◽  
Esteban Vöhringer-Martinez

In molecular modeling the description of the interactions between molecules forms the basis for a correct prediction of macroscopic observables. Here, we derive atomic charges from the implicitly polarized electron density of eleven molecules in the SAMPL6 challenge using the Hirshfeld-I and Minimal Basis Set Iterative Stockholder(MBIS) partitioning method. These atomic charges combined with other parameters in the GAFF force field and different water/octanol models were then used in alchemical free energy calculations to obtain hydration and solvation free energies, which after correction for the polarization cost, result in the blind prediction of the partition coefficient. From the tested partitioning methods and water models the S-MBIS atomic charges with the TIP3P water model presented the smallest deviation from the experiment. Conformational dependence of the free energies and the energetic cost associated with the polarization of the electron density are discussed.


1989 ◽  
Vol 54 (12) ◽  
pp. 3171-3186 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jan Kloubek

The validity of the Fowkes theory for the interaction of dispersion forces at interfaces was inspected for the system water-aliphatic hydrocarbons with 5 to 16 C atoms. The obtained results lead to the conclusion that the hydrocarbon molecules cannot lie in a parallel position or be randomly arranged on the surface but that orientation of molecules increases there the ration of CH3 to CH2 groups with respect to that in the bulk. This ratio is changed at the interface with water so that the surface free energy of the hydrocarbon, γH, rises to a higher value, γ’H, which is effective in the interaction with water molecules. Not only the orientation of molecules depends on the adjoining phase and on the temperature but also the density of hydrocarbons on the surface of the liquid phase changes. It is lower than in the bulk and at the interface with water. Moreover, the volume occupied by the CH3 group increases on the surface more than that of the CH2 group. The dispersion component of the surface free energy of water, γdW = 19.09 mJ/m2, the non-dispersion component, γnW = 53.66 mJ/m2, and the surface free energies of the CH2 and CH3 groups, γ(CH2) = 32.94 mJ/m2 and γ(CH3) = 15.87 mJ/m2, were determined at 20 °C. The dependence of these values on the temperature in the range 15-40 °C was also evaluated.


2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Germano Heinzelmann ◽  
Michael K. Gilson

AbstractAbsolute binding free energy calculations with explicit solvent molecular simulations can provide estimates of protein-ligand affinities, and thus reduce the time and costs needed to find new drug candidates. However, these calculations can be complex to implement and perform. Here, we introduce the software BAT.py, a Python tool that invokes the AMBER simulation package to automate the calculation of binding free energies for a protein with a series of ligands. The software supports the attach-pull-release (APR) and double decoupling (DD) binding free energy methods, as well as the simultaneous decoupling-recoupling (SDR) method, a variant of double decoupling that avoids numerical artifacts associated with charged ligands. We report encouraging initial test applications of this software both to re-rank docked poses and to estimate overall binding free energies. We also show that it is practical to carry out these calculations cheaply by using graphical processing units in common machines that can be built for this purpose. The combination of automation and low cost positions this procedure to be applied in a relatively high-throughput mode and thus stands to enable new applications in early-stage drug discovery.


Materials ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 14 (5) ◽  
pp. 1146
Author(s):  
Zuzanna Żołek-Tryznowska ◽  
Alicja Kałuża

Starch films can be used as materials for food packaging purposes. The goal of this study is to compare how the starch origin influence the selected starch film properties. The films were made from various starches such as that from maize, potato, oat, rice, and tapioca using 50%w of glycerine as a plasticizer. The obtained starch-based films were made using the well-known casting method from a starch solution in water. The properties of the films that were evaluated were tensile strength, water vapour transition rate, moisture content, wettability, and their surface free energy. Surface free energy (SFE) and its polar and dispersive components were calculated using the Owens-Wendt-Rabel-Kaelbe approach. The values of SFE in the range of 51.64 to 70.81 mJ∙m−2 for the oat starch-based film and the maize starch-based film. The films revealed worse mechanical properties than those of conventional plastics for packaging purposes. The results indicated that the poorest tensile strength was exhibited by the starch-based films made from oat (0.36 MPa) and tapioca (0.78 MPa) and the greatest tensile strength (1.49 MPa) from potato.


2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Florian Blanc ◽  
Marco Cecchini

The design of molecular architectures exhibiting functional motions is a promising area for disruptive technological development. Towards this goal, rotaxanes and catenanes, which undergo relative motions of their sub-units in response to external stimuli, are prime candidates. Here, we report on the computational analysis of the contraction/extension of a bistable [c2]-daisy chain rotaxane. Using free energy calculations and transition path optimizations, we explore the free energy landscape governing the functional motions of a prototypical molecular machine with atomic resolution.<br>The calculations reveal a sequential mechanism for contraction/extension in which the asynchronous gliding of each ring is preferred over the concerted movement suggested by chemical intuition. Analysis of the underlying free energy surface indicates that dissymmetric gliding is favored because it entails crossings of much smaller barriers.<br>Our findings illustrate an important design principle for molecular machines, namely that efficient exploitation of thermal fluctuations may be realized by breaking down the large-scale functional motions into smaller steps.


2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jenke Scheen ◽  
Wilson Wu ◽  
Antonia S. J. S. Mey ◽  
Paolo Tosco ◽  
Mark Mackey ◽  
...  

A methodology that combines alchemical free energy calculations (FEP) with machine learning (ML) has been developed to compute accurate absolute hydration free energies. The hybrid FEP/ML methodology was trained on a subset of the FreeSolv database, and retrospectively shown to outperform most submissions from the SAMPL4 competition. Compared to pure machine-learning approaches, FEP/ML yields more precise estimates of free energies of hydration, and requires a fraction of the training set size to outperform standalone FEP calculations. The ML-derived correction terms are further shown to be transferable to a range of related FEP simulation protocols. The approach may be used to inexpensively improve the accuracy of FEP calculations, and to flag molecules which will benefit the most from bespoke forcefield parameterisation efforts.


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yuriy Khalak ◽  
Gary Tresdern ◽  
Matteo Aldeghi ◽  
Hannah Magdalena Baumann ◽  
David L. Mobley ◽  
...  

The recent advances in relative protein-ligand binding free energy calculations have shown the value of alchemical methods in drug discovery. Accurately assessing absolute binding free energies, although highly desired, remains...


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