THE EFFECT OF AN EXTERNALLY ADDED CHARGE CONTROL AGENT ON CONTACT CHARGING BETWEEN POLYMERS

The triboelectrification resulting from rolling-sliding contact betwee n selected polymer materials was experimentally investigated by adding small quantities of a powdered charge control agent (CCA) to various mixtures of polymers. The CCA consisted of a mixture of tri-methyl-phe nyl-ammonium and tetra-phenyl-borate powders. It was externally added to a batch consisting of two or three kinds of polymer particles havin g diameters between 3 to 5 mm. The polymers tested were PET, LDPE, HDP E, PP and PVC. The neutralized polymer particles were rolled in an HDP E bottle in which the inner wall was either clean or almost uniformly coated by the CCA powder. Using a clean HDPE bottle, the contact charg ing of the particles of any of the polymers was found to be negligible . In contrast the combination of LDPE and HDPE triboelectrified in a b ottle with the CCA showed remarkable change in charge to mass ratios; positively charged LDPE (+ 18.5 muC/kg) and negatively charged HDPE (- 19.4 muC/kg). The powdered charge control agent selectively sticks to a particular polymer and results in a net charge of specific polarity.