Contact angles of submillimeter particles: connecting wettability to nanoscale surface topography.
A method is presented for the measurement of contact angles of particles in the size range 100-1000 microm, using an optical microscope. This method is used to characterize the wettability of polyethylene particles produced in a gas-phase polymerization process. The as-polymerized particles are shown to be significantly more hydrophobic than melt-processed polyethylene materials. The surface structure of the particles is examined with scanning electron microscopy, and the increased hydrophobicity of the as-polymerized particles is attributed to the nanoscale texture of the particle surfaces.
Forward
Keith M
KM
Department of Chemical Engineering, Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland, Ohio 44106, USA.
Moster
Amanda L
AL
Schwartz
Daniel K
DK
Lacks
Daniel J
DJ