Structural analysis of anisometric colloidal iron(III)-hydroxide particles and particle-aggregates incorporated in poly(vinyl-acetate) networks

Anisometrical colloidal iron(III)hydroxide particles and particle aggregates were incorporated in elastic poly(vinyl acetate) networks. A novel method has been developed to fix the colloidal structure of deformed samples. Digitalized image analysis has been applied in order to evaluate the micrographs. The rod-like particles allow for studying the local deformation and orientation due to uniaxial and triaxial deformations. The density correlation function as well as the micrographs show that the structure of aggregates is not influenced by the strain. Due to strong attractive interactions between the colloidal particles the developing strain is not enough to destroy the aggregate structure. The orientation behavior of the model filled networks can be satisfactorily described by using the affinity principle.