CONTACT ELECTRIFICATION OF MATERIALS - THE CHEMISTRY OF IONS ON POLYMER SURFACES

This report summarizes some recent studies aimed at determining the ro le of ion transfer in contact charging ib polymers. The studies were c arried out using blends of polymers and ionomers or polymers and organ ic salts. These blends were charged by contacting with a metal surface and the contact charge which developed was related to the amount and structure of the ions in the polymer blend. A Kelvin Probe and an atom ic Force Microbalance were used to determine the charge. A ion transfe r model for contact charging was developed which relates the charge to the ions which are on the surface and are mobile, i.e. not covalently bonded or ion pair associated.