Surface modification of polyethylene by diffuse barrier discharge plasma |
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| Authors: | Igor Novák Marian Števiar Anton Popelka Ivan Chodák Jaroslav Mosnáček Milena Špírková Ivica Janigová Angela Kleinová Ján Sedliačik Miroslav Šlouf |
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| Affiliation: | 1. Polymer Institute of the Slovak Academy of Sciences, Dúbravská cesta 9, 845 41 Bratislava 45, Slovakia;2. Institute of Macromolecular Chemistry, v. v. i., Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic, Heyrovsky Sq. 2, 162 06 Prague 6, Czech Republic;3. Faculty of Wood Sciences and Technology, Technical University in Zvolen, Department of Furniture and Wood Products, T. G. Masaryka 24, 960 53 Zvolen, Slovakia |
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| Abstract: | Low‐density polyethylene (LDPE) modified by atmospheric dielectric surface barrier discharge plasma in oxygen was investigated to improve surface properties and adhesion of LDPE to more polar polymers. The process of plasma modification was investigated using several methods—surface energy measurements, Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy with Attenuated Total Reflectance (FTIR‐ATR), Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM), and Atomic Force Microscopy (AFM). The surface energy of LDPE increased significantly after activation by oxygen barrier plasma even at very short time of modification. The FTIR‐ATR spectra manifested the presence of carbonyl functional groups on the surface of polymer pre‐treated by oxygen barrier plasma. It was shown by SEM, and AFM, that the topography of modified LDPE was significantly changed and the surface of modified polymer exhibited higher roughness in comparison with unmodified polymer. The surface energy of treated LDPE diminished in the course of ageing especially during the first 10 days after modification by barrier plasma. Hydrophilicity of the modified LDPE surface was stabilized by photochemical post‐functionalization with 2,2,6,6‐tetramethylpiperidin‐4‐yl‐diazoacetate. POLYM. ENG. SCI., 2013. © 2012 Society of Plastics Engineers |
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