Premium
A new approach to the design of surface treatments for reinforcing agents
Author(s) -
Economy James,
Jung Holger,
Andreopoulos Andreas G.
Publication year - 1992
Publication title -
polymers for advanced technologies
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.61
H-Index - 90
eISSN - 1099-1581
pISSN - 1042-7147
DOI - 10.1002/pat.1992.220030708
Subject(s) - adsorption , materials science , tetrahydrofuran , thermogravimetric analysis , polymer , dimethylformamide , methanol , acetone , desorption , chemical engineering , activated carbon , carbon fibers , surface modification , composite material , polymer chemistry , organic chemistry , chemistry , composite number , solvent , engineering
A new approach for design of improved interfacial bonding between carbon fibers and polymeric matrices is described. In this method the affinity of surface‐treated carbon fibers to various polymer matrices is simulated by analyzing the adsorption characteristics of model compounds, typical of the polymer units, onto very high surface area carbon fibers. The affinity can be evaluated by the use of Thermogravimetric Analysis (TGA) to measure adsorption–desorption characteristics. Since high surface area, activated carbon fibers (ACF) can be chemically treated to obtain acidic, basic, nonpolar or highly polar surfaces, it should be possible to assess the interactions of chemically modified surfaces with model compounds such as methanol (MeOH), acetone, dimethylformamide (DMF), dimethylether, tetrahydrofuran (THF) and water. Some preliminary results are presented, indicating that surface treatments for carbon fibers other than oxidation may lead to enhanced bonding with polymeric matrices.