Surface modification and biocompatible improvement of polystyrene film by Ar, O2 and Ar + O2 plasma

▸ NVP is successfully grafted onto the different discharge gases (Ar, O2, and Ar + O2) plasma-treated PS film surface by Ar plasma induced graft polymerization. ▸ Compare with Ar and O2 plasma, the Ar + O2 plasma-treated film surface introduced large amounts of NVP, as known from ATR-FTIR and XPS results. ▸ According to SEM, the surface roughness increased at different levels after plasma treatment. Contact angle reveal that the hydrophilicity of the PS film surface was greatly improved. ▸ Cellular compatibility tests indicate that Ar + O2 plasma is more capable of increasing cell adhesion and proliferation.