Polymer Surface Modification: Relevance to Adhesion, Volume 1

This book embodies the proceedings of the International Symposium on Polymer Surface Modification: Relevance to Adhesion, held in Las Vegas. The articles in this book were previously published in four special issues of the Journal of Adhesion Science and Technology. Polymeric materials are used for a legion of applications in a host of technological areas. However, polymers are innately hydrophobic, low surface energy materials and thus do not adhere well to other materials brought in contact. This necessitates their surface modification/treatment to render them adhesionable. The articles in this volume cover a wide array of surface modification techniques, ranging from simple to sophisticated, wet to dry, vacuum to nonvacuum for a host of polymeric materials. The topics covered include: plasma surface treatment of a number of polymers; laser surface treatment of various polymers; corona, flame, UV, ozone, UV/ozone, photochemical, photografting, chemical grafting, and chemical methods of polymer surface modification; modification of polyamide surfaces by microorganisms; effect of polymer surface modification on metal/polymer adhesion; barrier properties of surface treated polymers; ageing study of surface treated polymers; physico-chemical properties of surface-modified polymers; application of inverse gas chromatography in the characterization of polymers; and surface acoustic wave sensor to study polymer surface treatments.