70 FUNDAMENTALS OF SUBMIC ROSCOPIC MORPHOLOGY I 



(Fig. 54b). In this case the gel is no longer a one-phase system: the 

 reo-ions of lattice order form a homogeneous phase in contrast to the 

 pseudophase formed by the mixture of the unordered chains and the 

 surrounding liquid. 



Hence, from a structural point of view there are two kinds of gels. 



iJ L_. 

 a) b) 



Fig. 54. Ordered regions in a gel framework, a) Locally 

 parallelized chain molecules, b) local formation of a crystal 



lattice. 



viz., I. one-phase gels whose framework consists of very long chain 

 molecules interlinked at the junctions (pseudophases) and 2. two- 

 phase gels with a crystalline and a non-crystalline (amorphous) phase. 

 Instead of the fine chain framework of the one-phase gels, we then 

 have a much coarser rod framework. 



Dispersion series. Having derived the structure of gels from the 

 special form of the high molecular weight chain molecules — thus 

 starting from below, that is from the amicroscopic domain — we 

 shall now try to advance into the submicroscopic domain of gels from 

 the macroscopic and microscopic regions. In colloid chemistry the 

 concept of colloid particles is usually derived from macroscopic 

 particles with the aid of a dispersion series. The particle size in this series 

 decreases steadily to microscopic dimensions, ultimately declining to 

 invisible submicroscopic dimensions. The final step in the direction 

 of progressive dispersion leads from the colloid range to the ami- 

 croscopic dispersions of true solutions (Table IX). 



When making a similar dispersion series for gels one must start from 

 re ficu/ar instead of corpuscular systems. The frequency of such systems 

 in biology is surprising; one comes to the conclusion that network 

 systems of all dimensions are typical of living matter! 



