Influence of poling conditions on the gas emission of PVDF

The influence of the poling time and the polarity of the applied voltage on the time dependence of the gas emission of PVDF is investigated. If PVDF films are poled in electric fields of about 100MV/m, charges are injected and ions are formed by electrochemical reactions. By recombination and by other reactions of these ions, HF gas is evolved, diffusing out of the sample through the porous electrode. This gas emission increases with increasing field strength. At constant field it decreases to a steady state value comparable to the space-charge-limited poling current of PVDF. Free ions are trapped in the polarization zone. Under short-circuit conditions shallow trapped ions are freed and the gas emission increases strongly. The longer the poling time, the broader the polarization distribution. If the polarization zone is located near the nonporous electrode, the recombined gas molecules need longer time to reach the porous electrode. Therefore, the gas emission under short-circuit conditions is delayed by poling with negative polarity compared to positive polarity