ABSTRACT
In most engineering applications, a polymer is selected because of its favorable bulk properties, such as mechanical strength, electrical and/or electronic properties, thermal stability, and processability. Often, however, the selected polymer has surface characteristics that are less than optimal for the intended application. For example, the surfaces of most engineering polymers in use today are all fairly hydrophobic. Therefore, it is difficult to bond the hydrophobic polymer surfaces directly with other materials, such as adhesives, printing inks, and paints, which generally consist of polar groups or components. The problem can be overcome, to a large extent, through controlled modification and functionalization of polymer surfaces. The polymer literature is extremely rich in methods and strategies directed toward modification of polymer surfaces for specific applications. Some common methods employed to improve the physicochemical properties of polymer surfaces, together with the nature of the resultant surfaces, are shown in Table 1 [1].
