SURFACE MODIFICATIONS AND ADHESION OF VULCANIZED SBR RUBBER TREATED WITH RF PLASMAS OF DIFFERENT GASES

The surface modifications produced by treatment of a synthetic vulcanized styrene-butadiene rubber (R1) with oxidizing (oxygen, air, carbon dioxide) and nonoxidizing (nitrogen, argon) RF plasmas have been assessed by ATR-IR and XPS spectroscopy, SEM, and contact angle measurements. The effectiveness of the treatment depended on the gas atmosphere used to generate the RF plasma. In general, acceptable adhesion values of treated R1 rubber were obtained for all plasmas, except for the nitrogen plasma treatment during 15 min, due to the creation of weak layers of low molecular weight moieties on the outermost R1 rubber layer. A toluene wiping of the 15 min N2-plasma–treated R1 rubber surface removed those moieties, and increased adhesion was obtained. On the other hand, the air, carbon dioxide, and oxygen plasmas produced ablation of the R1 rubber surface, whereas mechanical degradation was not produced by treatment with the Ar plasma.