ABSTRACT
Abstract-An understanding of the surface free energy and surface chemistry of solids is needed for investigation into the nature of processes involving adhesion, wetting and liquid penetration. Frequently the contact angles of several probe liquids on a given solid are used for calculation of solid surface free energy. Models by Fowkes, Kwok and Neumann, van Oss, Chaudhury and Good, as well as by Chang and Chen have been used for such calculations. Each of the above models has been championed in the literature. It has been noted by the present author and others that the use of different models may lead to different qualitative interpretations of the nature of a solid surface. A disinterested comparison of the various available models has not been made. In the present paper, a comparison of the calculations is undertaken in order to better understand the limitations of each model. Particular attention to the assumptions required for contact-angle data to be used for surface free energy calculations is given. The effect of the degree to which the experimental contact-angle data meet the required assumptions have on the calculated surface free energy is addressed in this work. When data meeting the theoretical assumptions common to the various published models are used, all of the published models fit the data, to a good approximation, equally well. A poor fit of the experimental data is an indicator that at least one liquid does not fully meet the assumptions required by the chosen model. Differences in the acid-base character of the solid surface appear toresult from the acid-base scale used by the model. The paper is intended to raise the awareness of the difficulties in assigning surface free energy and predicting wetting behavior.
