Effect of morphology in the surface region of polymers on adhesion and adhesive joint strength

The morphological character of the surface region of polyethylene has been considered with respect to adhesion and adhesive joint strength. By melting polyethylene onto a high-energy surface (e.g., aluminum) we have provided for extensive nucleation and the formation of a transcrystalline region in the polymer. Dissolution of the metal rather than peeling the metal from the polymer leaves the surface region of the polymer intact. The polymer sheet is now amenable to conventional adhesive bonding and forms a strong adhesive joint. We conclude from this study that the occurrence of the normal weak boundary layer is a consequence of the morphology of the surface region of the material and is, therefore, influenced by the method of preparation.     

Radiation effects on the immiscible polymer blend of nylon1010 and high-impact strength polystyrene (II): mechanical properties and morphology

The paper studies the morphology and mechanical properties of immiscible binary blends of the nylon 1010 and HIPS through the radiation crosslinking method. In this blend, the HIPS particles were the dispersed phases in the nylon1010 matrix. With increasing of dose, the elastic modulus increased. However, the tensile strength, elongation at break and the energy of fracture increased to a maximum at a dose of 0.34 MGy, then reduced with the increasing of dose. SEM photographs show that the hole sizes are not changed obviously at low dose and at high dose, remnants that cannot be dissolved in formic acid and THF can be observed in the holes and on the surface. TEM photographs showed that radiation destroys the rubber phases in the polymer blend.     

Melting behavior and morphology of drawn nylon 6

Thermal analysis has been carried out on drawn nylon 6 filaments annealed at various temperatures between 150 and 210°C and then methoxymethylated to various degrees. It is shown that the melting point inherent to the morphology of drawn nylon 6 can be obtained from samples in which the reorganization of defect crystallites in the course of thermal analysis is prevented by a proper degree of methoxymethylation of amorphous regions. The melting point thus obtained is in linear relation with the reciprocal crystallite size in the direction of fiber axis which has been obtained from small-angle x-ray data and crystallinity. The extrapolation and the slope of this linear relation give the equilibrium melting point of nylon 6 as 245°C and an end-surface free energy of 42 erg/cm². The results seem to provide strong support for the presence of chain-fold surfaces in the drawn and annealed polymers.     

A smart adhesive joint: entropic control of adhesion at a polymer/metal interface

The study of adhesion has a long and rich history, with theory, experiments, and applications bridging numerous disciplines, including physics, chemistry, engineering, and medicine. This diverse interest has led to the development of a large number of methods for both enhancing and inhibiting adhesion at specific interfaces of interest. We report herein "smart" adhesion at a polymer/metal (oxide) interface that responds reversibly to changes in temperature by increasing or decreasing in magnitude. The temperature dependence in this system arises from the rubber elasticity of the polymer, 1,4-polybutadiene, and mirrors the interfacial behavior of the same polymer against water. Such systems offer unique opportunities for designing responsive materials whose properties can be actively controlled.     

Effect of interfacial bonding on the strength of adhesion of elastomers. II. Dissimilar adherends

Two elastomer layers, differing either in initial degree of crosslinking or in chemical reactivity, were bonded together by a free-radical crosslinking process. The elastomers employed were polybutadiene (BR) and an ethylene-propylene copolymer (EPR) differing in the efficiency of crosslinking by dicumyl peroxide by a factor of about 20. When a fully crosslinked sheet of either elastomer was pressed into contact with a partially crosslinked sheet of the same elastomer and the crosslinking then taken to completion, the strength of adhesion under threshold conditions was found to be qualitatively in accord with the predictions of a simple theoretical treatment for the degree of interlinking in terms of the corresponding homogeneous crosslinking reaction. Whereas the theory suggests that the effective degree of interlinking will be one-half of that generated in a homogeneous system, the experimental results were in accord with a figure of about 70%. When a layer of one elastomer was bonded to a layer of the other in a similar way, the strength of adhesion was found to be relatively high when the initial fully crosslinked layer was BR and relatively low when it was EPR. These results were also in qualitative agreement with theoretical predictions for the degree of chemical interlinking developed between layers differing in chemical reactivity. Thus a general correlation appears to hold between the threshold strength of adhesion and the amount of interlinking.     

Gelation and adhesion behavior of mussel adhesive protein mimetic polymer

An acrylamide‐type copolymer containing catechol, amino, and hydroxyl groups was synthesized as a mimetic of the natural mussel adhesive protein (MAP). The obtained copolymer in a phosphate buffer solution (pH = 8.0) formed a hydrogel within 2 h under air, whereas gelation did not proceed under argon atmosphere. We confirmed that the cross‐linking reaction of the synthesized MAP mimetic copolymer was triggered by aerobic oxidation of catechol moieties to form an adhesive hydrogel. Two aluminum plates were adhered by the gelation of the MAP mimetic copolymer solution under humid air at room temperature. The interfacial region between the two aluminum plates failed at a lap shear strength of 0.46 MPa due to cohesive failure of the hydrogel. The adhesion strength was dominated by mechanical strength of the hydrogel as well as the interface interaction of catechol groups with substrate surface. © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem, 2013     

Effect of metal-surface preparation on adhesive strength

The basic method of mechanical surface metal cleaning is described. The dependence of adhesive bonding strength on the degree of roughness of the base surface is shown. Results of optimal metal roughness determination are stated.     

Lignin adsorption on cellulose fibre surfaces: Effect on surface chemistry, surface morphology and paper strength

The adsorption of lignin on cellulose fibres at neutral pH and the effects of calcium ions and a cationic polyelectrolyte (PDADMAC) on the adsorption have been studied. The surface coverage by lignin was determined by electron spectroscopy for chemical analysis (ESCA). The morphology of the lignin layer was studied by atomic force microscopy (AFM). The effect of adsorbed polyelectrolyte and lignin on the strength properties of the paper was also studied. The adsorbed amount of lignin increased monotonically with lignin concentration. Addition of calcium ions resulted in a very high surface coverage by lignin. PDADMAC did not enhance the adsorption of lignin, but without addition of polyelectrolyte the lignin was very weakly attached to the fibre surface. PDADMAC formed complexes with lignin in solution. At high polymer/lignin concentration ratios the charge of the complex was positive and it adsorbed irreversibly as large blobs. At low ratios the complex was easily washed away from the fibre surface. When PDADMAC was pre-adsorbed on the fibre surface the lignin adsorbed as small granules at all lignin concentrations. Neither PDADMAC nor lignin alone increased the strength of pulp sheets significantly. However, together they increased the bonding between fibres.     

Effect of processing consitions on the development of morphology in clay nanoparticle filled nylon 6 fibers

The effect of melt temperature on the phase behavior and preferential orientation development in Nylon 6/montmorillonite nanocomposites were investigated at melt spinning temperatures ranging from 230° to 250°C. The fibers were found to exhibit mostly γ crystalline form that is typical of Nylon 6 filled with montmorillonite nanoparticles. At higher take-up speeds α-crystals begin to appear in the crystalline phase. The presence of nanoparticles was found to impart substantial chain orientation levels even at low to moderate take up speeds reaching a plateau at moderate take up speeds. This was attributed to the increased spin line stress in the presence of nanoparticles that increase the overall viscosity due to their large contact areas with the polymer chains. This increased spinline tension was found to cause fiber breakup at moderate speeds. Increasing melt temperature from 230° to 250°C alleviated this problem.     

Effect of fullerenes and gamma-irradiation on the adhesive strength of model adhesive joints

The dependence of the adhesive strength of model glass/binder/glass adhesive compositions cured with aliphatic and aromatic hardeners on the γ-radiation dose was studied. It was shown that the strength of the fullerene-modified binder decreases at low absorbed doses (to 20 kGy), whereas the strength of the composition with the aliphatic binder increases again with an increase in the dose in the range 140–240 kGy, although its does not reach that of the unirradiated composite.     

Studies on crystalline forms of nylon 6. II. Crystallization from the melt

The relative amounts of the α and the γ crystalline forms of nylon 6 obtained from the melt under different crystallization conditions have been studied by an x-ray diffraction procedure by comparison with a calibration curve obtained from the diffraction of standard samples. The weight fraction of the α form decreases with increasing crystallization temperature and that of the γ form increases. Growth of the α form is predominant in crystallization at 100°C and of the α form at 200°C. The amount of the α form tends to increase on annealing at 200°C for specimens crystallized at any temperature.     

Effect of silane‐grafted polypropylene on the morphology of polypropylene and nylon 6/clay composites

Polypropylene (PP)/nylon 6/clay composites were prepared by compounding of PP, which had previously been treated with two kinds of silane compounds, with a master batch composed of 90 wt % of nylon 6 and 10 wt % of octadecyl amine‐modified sodium montmorillonite (NM10). The morphology of the composites was investigated by means of SEM, TEM, XRD, and energy‐dispersive X‐ray analysis. All of the composites exhibited a phase‐separated morphology, irrespective of whether the PP was modified with the silane compounds or not. However, adhesive strength between the modified PP and NM10 was stronger than that between neat PP and NM10. Moreover, the PP grafted with 3‐(trimethoxysilyl)propyl methacrylate (PP2) reacted with the silanol groups of the clay to form PP‐clay hybrid during the compounding, which acted as a compatibilizer for the PP/nylon 6/clay composite. PP2NM composite (PP2/NM10 80/20 on weight basis) exhibited a peculiar morphology, in that the PP‐rich phase formed island domains within the nylon 6‐rich domains, which were in turn dispersed in the PP‐rich continuous matrix. © 2007 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part B: Polym Phys 45: 607–615, 2007.     

The influence of processing in discharge with a closed drift of electrons on the adhesion properties and the strength of polymer adhesive joints

Results obtained in studying the influence of processing in gas-discharge plasma with a closed drift of electrons on the surface free energy of polymers (polyethylene terephthalate, polyvinylidene fluoride, polysulfone, and polyimide) and the strength of adhesive joints formed by polymer materials and adhesion of paint-and-lacquer coatings.     

Computational studies on polymer adhesion at the surface of gamma-Al2O3. I. The adsorption of adhesive component molecules from the gas phase

We calculate the minimum energy paths and reaction energies of the adsorption of the epoxide adhesive components diglycidylesterbisphenol A (DGEBA), diethyltriamine (DETA), and the adhesion promoter 3-aminopropylmethoxysilane (AMEO) at two different sites on a model of the native Al2O3 surface, using the nudged elastic band algorithm in conjunction with self-consistent charge-density functional based tight binding. Our results show that the chosen combination of methods is well suited to obtain an overview of the reaction mechanisms and kinetics of the adsorption of organic molecules on inorganic surfaces. The obtained MEP-s show that there is preference for the adsorption of the adhesion promoter, AMEO, over the resin, DGEBA, while the adsorption of the curing agent, DETA, is unfavorable. Our approach also gives an insight into the ranges of the mechanical and electronic influences of the adsorption process on the interface, which neither full ab initio methods nor force field approaches can provide. These results will help to develop a quantum mechanics-molecular mechanics multiscale embedding scheme for more detailed studies of organic/inorganic hybrid interface reactions.     

Thickening of crystals during rapid heating. II. Crosslinked polyethylene and methoxymethylated nylon 6

The effect of modification of polymer chains on crystal thickening during heating was investigated with an apparatus devised for rapid measurement of small-angle x-ray diffraction. Thickening of crystals still occurred even at a heating rate of 18°C/min in polyethylene irradiated with gamma ray doses of 30–300 Mrad, and the melting point was depressed. These results showed that the melting point depression due to irradiation is not due to a restriction on crystal thickening but rather to crystal lattice distortion. On the other hand, although methoxymethylation of nylon 6 completely inhibits crystal thickening, the melting point increases or decreases depending on the temperature of annealing preceding methoxymethylation. From these results we are led to conclude that irradiation and methoxymethylation are not effective means of obtaining the relation between melting point and crystal thickness.     

Adhesion of viscoelastic materials to rigid substrates. II. Tensile strength of adhesive joints

Measurements have been made of the tensile force required to pull a disk of a model viscoelastic adhesive away from an inert rigid substrate. Over a wide range of temperature and rate of deformation of the adhesive the results were found to yield a single master relation in terms of deformation rate by means of the Williams, Landel and Ferry rate—temperature equivalence for viscous materials. Thus, the strength of adhesion is due mainly to dynamic effects in the adhesive of a viscous nature, in a similar way to the cohesive strength of viscoelastic materials. This similarity is attributed to a common failure mechanism: initial failure at a highly stressed point, followed by spreading of the failure zone under local stresses which are governed by the dynamic response of a compliant material. An increase in the strength of adhesion is observed with decreasing thickness of the adhesive layer. This is also explained by the proposed failure mechanism if failure starts at a critical amount of local deformation energy, a form of Griffith's fracture criterion.     

Influence of colloidal structure of polymer mixes on adhesion strength of polyolefin compositions

Mixtures of low-density polyethylene and ethylene-vinyl acetate (EVA) copolymer are studied. It is shown that the adhesion value is defined by the polymer that forms a dispersion medium in the adhesive compositions and the type of fracture depends on the competing influence of the physical and mechanical parameters and the reduced acidity parameter of the polymer, which forms a continuous phase.