Structure of polyethylene after pulse ion beam treatment

Pulse ion beam treatment was employed for polyethylene (PE) surface ;modification. Ultraviolet, infrared (IR), IR-attenuated total reflection spectroscopy (IR-ATR), and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy methods, as well as wetting angle measurement, were used for the analysis of PE structural changes. Theoretical calculations and experimental data showed treated PE surfaces to have a layered structure. It was found that the upper layer contains various products of PE oxidation and the lower layer contains products of PE decomposition, that is, condensed aromatic structures. (C) 1998 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci 69: 1071-1077, 1998.