Modificação da superfície do polipropileno por imersão em plasma de baixa energia

Abstract

The use of low energy plasma immersion with active screen as a convenient approach for polypropylene (PP) surface modification is described in this work. Employing a stainless steel cathodic cage coated with carbon in order to prevent the sputtering of iron from the grid and its deposition onto the polymer sample, the physical chemical properties of PP surface could be effectively functionalized through the plasma-induced incorporation/formation of nitrogen- and oxygen-containing species. The areal densities of these elements depended on the plasma excitation source. Newly formed C-O, C-N, and C=O/O=C-O/N-C=O bonds along with C-C linkages from the PP backbone were identified at the near surface region of the specimens by x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) and attenuated total reflection infrared spectroscopy (ATR-IR). The insertion of such polar reactive functionalities was further confirmed by a substantial decrease in the water contact angle upon plasma treatment. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) analysis revealed that while no major changes in the morphology occur upon DC plasma treatments as compared to untreated samples, the use of pulsed plasma consistently leads to the formation of cracks at the surface. The replacement of the cathodic cage material by graphite surprisingly led to the formation of duplex films composed of a top layer of pure carbon a bottom layer of stoichiometric carbon nitride (CNx). The deposition mechanism involves the sputtering of carbon atoms from the cage structure, which subsequently deposit on the surface and react with nitrogen species present in the plasma. Therefore, this is a very simple and original method that allows for the preparation of CNx films on temperature-sensitive samples, as is the case of most polymers. All the experimental approaches undertaken in this work were found to improve remarkably the hardness of the polymer surface to an extent that depended on the plasma excitation method, exposure time and cathodic cage material. In particular, a synergic effect was observed for specimens containing a plasma-modified surface covered by a carbon nitrided layer. The herein reported approach is an attractive tool for environmental friendly, cost-effective surface engineering of novel polymeric materials.