The evaluation of sonochemical techniques for sustainable surface modification in electronic manufacturing

Purpose This paper sets out to give an introduction to sonochemistry and the effects brought about by the application of ultrasound that might be useful in surface modification; and to show the feasibility of sonochemical surface modification in water on a range of materials employed in electronic manufacturing. Design/methodology/approach Ultrasound was applied through DI water for the surface modification of four materials: a ceramic, a polyphenylene ester (polystyrene polymer (Noryl HM4025)), an acrylonitrile‐butadiene‐styrene/polycarbonate (ABS/PC‐Cycolac S705), and an FR4 laminate (Isola Duraver 104). The efficacy of the treatment was determined by weight loss, scanning electronic microscopy, contact angle and roughness. Findings Ceramic and Noryl materials can be surface modified sonochemically in DI water. Weight loss results suggested that, this was also the case for the Duraver laminate but the ABS/PC substrate was least affected by treatment in an ultrasonic field under these benign processing conditions. Originality/value Traditional “wet” surface modification techniques often use hazardous chemistry, high‐process temperatures, copious rinsing and long dwell times. This research programme addresses these issues by evaluating sonochemical surface modification techniques with the objective of producing a one‐step process using benign chemistry at lower temperature with less rinsing.