Surface treatment of polymers for adhesive bonding

Abstract Further studies of a new and highly effective method for the surface treatment of low surface energy polymers for adhesive bonding are reported. Mechanisms are suggested for the increase in the cohesive strength in the surface region of polyethylene when it is exposed to activated species of inert gases. The technique is unique because, in contrast with results obtained with other methods, bulk properties of the polymer such as color or tensile strength and elongation are unaffected and surface properties such as wettability and dielectric properties such as surface conductivity are essentially unchanged.