Adhesive properties of silanol surface modified poly(ethylene naphthalate) film

Full Paper: Semicrystalline poly(ethylene naphthalate) (PEN) films were modified with 3-aminopropyltriethoxysilane (APS) and subsequently hydrolyzed to give silanol (Si-OH) functionality to the PEN surface by means of amide linkages (PEN-CONH(CH2)(3)Si(OH)(3)). The modified PEN films were characterised by reflectance FT-IR, contact angle (ca. 80degrees before modification and ca. 43degrees after modifications) and by fluorescence spectroscopy. The modified films were terminated at 130degreesC and 500 psi. The adhesion peel test showed that these modified PEN films from strong adhesive bonds with each other (12.51 kg/m) as well as with glass (6.43 kg/m). SEM analysis showed that failure during the peel strength determination occured within the film matrix and not at the adhesion interface.