SURFACE MODIFICATION OF POLYPROPYLENE FABRICS BY ACRYLONITRILE COLD-PLASMA

Polypropylene fabrics were extracted with carbontetrachloride and acet one by Soxhlet extraction, and then PPAN(plasma polymerized acrylonitr ile) was grafted to the surface of the extracted fabrics using a groun d pressure of 0.05 mm Hg, 0.3 mm Hg pressure in the reactor, 60 W and 100 W RF power, and reaction times of 30 seconds, 1, 3, and 5 minutes. ESCA analysis was used to determine the ratios of carbon, nitrogen, a nd oxygen at a 20 Angstrom sampling depth. IR and ATR-IR were used to obtain information on the structure of the grafted surface. Major diff erences were detected in the IR spectra of PPAN in comparison to PAN. The spectra of deposited polymers indicated the loss of -C=N functiona l groups. Dehydrogenation and intramolecular reorganization involving =C=N- and =C=C= also occurred, and as reaction time increased, the lev el of structural changes increased. Longer reaction periods and higher power resulted in increased deposition rates. Studying the water upta ke and dyeability bf PPAN revealed that higher treatment times lead to higher water uptake and K/S values. The nature of the substrate (Pyre x glass, KBr pellet, and polypropylene fabric) did not have a signific ant influence on the structure of deposited films.