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Surface Modification and Hydrophobic Recovery (Aging) of Polyolefin Exposed to Plasma

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Plasma Modification of Polyolefins

Part of the book series: Engineering Materials ((ENG.MAT.))

Abstract

The hydrophobic characteristic of polymers is considered a limiting property for its applications. To some extent, this has been overcome by techniques such as non-thermal plasma, which, even with a few seconds of application, can increase the surface energy and hydrophilic character of polymers. However, this technique is associated with advantages and disadvantages. Surface degradation related to oxidation and crosslinking are considered irreversible changes, in most cases, while the hydrophobic character is quickly restored, presenting a challenge to researchers all over the world. As a reversible behavior, efforts have been made to understand this particular characteristic of the hydrophobic recovery (or the aging effect) of polymers. The application of non-thermal plasma on polymeric surfaces has also been used in biomedicine as a sterilization device to control the growth of biofilms, as well as to increase the biocompatibility of prosthetic surfaces. This chapter discusses some particular characteristics of polyolefins exposed to plasma.

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Acknowledgements

The authors are particularly grateful to Instituto Nacional de Engenharia de Superfícies (INCT-INES) for the financial support.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Chemistry Department, Federal University of Santa Catarina, Santa Catarina, Florianópolis, 88040-900, Brazil

    Taís Felix, Valdir Soldi & Nito Angelo Debacher

  2. Instituto Brasileiro de Tecnologia Do Couro, Calçado e Artefatos, IBTec, Novo Hamburgo, Rio Grande Do Sul, 93334-000, Brazil

    Valdir Soldi

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Polymer Science and Rubber Technology, Cochin University of Science and Technology, Kerala, Kerala, India

    N. S. Baneesh

  2. Department of Polymer Science and Rubber Technology, Cochin University of Science and Technology, Kerala, Kerala, India

    P. S. Sari

  3. Department of Materials Engineering, Czech Technical University in Prague, Praha 2, Czech Republic

    Tatana Vackova

  4. School of Energy Materials, Mahatma Gandhi University, Kottayam, Kerala, India

    Sabu Thomas

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Felix, T., Soldi, V., Debacher, N.A. (2022). Surface Modification and Hydrophobic Recovery (Aging) of Polyolefin Exposed to Plasma. In: Baneesh, N.S., Sari, P.S., Vackova, T., Thomas, S. (eds) Plasma Modification of Polyolefins. Engineering Materials. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-52264-3_8

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