Molecular Dynamics Study on the Adsorption and Modification Mechanism of Polymeric Sand-Fixing Agent

Chemical sand-fixing technology has shown good potential in preventing desertification, but the effect is determined by materials. In this paper, the adsorption behavior of quartz and six common polymer sand-fixing agents under dry conditions was studied by molecular dynamics method. The results show that all polymers could be adsorbed on the surface of quartz and their functional groups play an important role in the adsorption process. Compared with other materials, the binding energy and the number of hydrogen bonds of PAA-quartz composites were improved by 30.7–65.6% and 8.3–333.3%, respectively. It was found that the number of hydrogen bonds formed under the unit molecular was positively correlated with the mechanical properties of the improved sandy soil. This study provides an accurate, efficient and inexpensive qualitative evaluation method for the curing effect of sand fixers, which will assist in the screening and development of new high performance sand fixers.