Surface properties of copper based cermet materials

The paper presents the characterization of the surface properties of copper based cermets obtained by two different techniques: spray pyrolysis deposition (SPD) and electrodeposition. Copper acetate was used as precursor of Cu/CuOx cermet. The surface morphology was tailored by adding copolymers of maleic anhydride with controlled hydrophobia. The films morphology of Cu/CuOx was assessed using contact angle measurements and AFM analysis. The porous structures obtained via SPD lead to higher liquid adsorption rate than the electrodeposited films. A highly polar liquid - water is recommended as testing liquid in contact angle measurements, for estimating the porosity of copper based cermets, while glycerol can be used to distinguish among ionic and metal predominant structures. Thus, contact angle measurements can be used for a primary evaluation of the films morphology and, on the other hand, of the ratio between the cermet components.