Effects of surface treatment with coupling agents of PVDF-HFP fibers on the improvement of the adhesion characteristics on PDMS

Surface treatment of polyvinylidene fluoride-co-hexafluoropropylene (PVDF-HFP) fibers was conducted with coupling agents such as epoxy silane, amino silane, and titanate to improve the adhesion characteristics of PVDF-HFP fibers and polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS). The adhesion strength was largest when 4 wt% amino silane was used for surface treatment, showing a 250% improvement compared to the untreated case. Surface roughening and shrinking of the PVDF-HFP fibers were observed after surface treatment, but no chemical bonding occurred between the PVDF-HFP fibers and the coupling agents. It was thus concluded that the improvement of the adhesion characteristics of the PVDF-HFP fibers and PDMS was caused by the physical bonding between them due to the surface treatment with coupling agents. In addition, for the surface roughening mechanism, amino silane infiltration into the PVDF-HFP fibers during the surface treatment, followed by extraction during the drying process, was suggested.