Can peptides reduce the interfacial energy of immiscible polymer interfaces?

The immiscibility of polymer blends arises due to high interfacial energy. Synthetic strategies such as incorporating block copolymers or functionalizing interfaces have shown considerable success in reducing the interfacial energy. These approaches are critical for enhancing mechanical performance and interfacial adhesion in materials. Their effectiveness can be attributed to tunable chemical functionality, selective interactions with distinct polymer components etc.

Here, we ask the question, can peptides of natural amino acids reduce the interfacial energy of polymer blends?

We employ coarse-grained molecular dynamics simulations to develop a computational framework to investigate the physics of peptides and their interaction with polymer blends. We assess the influence of peptide concentration, chain length, and residue type on interfacial energy.  This study will provide molecular-level insights into how amino-acid sequences can optimize the interfacial energy of polymer blends.