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Surface treatment of polymers. II. Effectiveness of fluorination as a surface treatment for polyethylene
Author(s) -
Schonhorn H.,
Hansen R. H.
Publication year - 1968
Publication title -
journal of applied polymer science
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.575
H-Index - 166
eISSN - 1097-4628
pISSN - 0021-8995
DOI - 10.1002/app.1968.070120521
Subject(s) - wetting , polytetrafluoroethylene , polyethylene , adhesive , fluorine , polymer , materials science , acrylic polymer , composite material , chemical engineering , surface modification , polymer chemistry , layer (electronics) , metallurgy , engineering
An effective surface treatment for adhesive bonding of polyethylene has been developed. It involves exposing the polymer to an environment of elemental fluorine or fluorine diluted in argon. By this treatment, extensive fluorination of the surface region is effected. The fluorinated surface permits formation of strong adhesive joints by conventional adhesive bonding techniques even though the wettability of the new surface is similar to polytetrafluoroethylene. We believe that treatment of the polymer with elemental fluorine effectively eliminates the weak boundary layer associated with polyethylene by either crosslinking or by increasing the molecular weight in the surface region.