Fluorination of polypropylene by remote inductively coupled plasmas sustained in Ar/F2 and Ar/NF3 gas mixtures

Summary form only given. The surface energy and adhesion properties of commodity polymers such as polypropylene (PP) can be modified by functionalization of the surface by plasma-generated radicals and ions. For example affixing fluorine to the surface in a low temperature plasma lowers surface energy and increases hydrophobicity. The F atoms produced in the plasma both abstract H atoms from and adhere to the surface. In such plasma fluorination, the surface is also subject to energetic ion and photon fluxes. Another strategy is the use of a remote plasma to produce a flow of fluorine radicals which are injected into a reactor where the PP sheets are processed. For example, a remote inductively coupled plasma (TCP) sustained in mixtures containing F₂ or NF₃ produces plumes of F and NF_X radicals which functionalize the PP. In these systems, the PP is subject to only neutral species and so may have different surface properties than PP immersed in a plasma.