Surface Energy and Morphology of Blend Films of Polystyrene and Polybutadiene
ABSTRACT Ion beam and surface analysis complemented with optical and electron microscopy are used to analyze the structure of spin‐coated films of blends of polystyrene and polybutadiene. Both polystyrene and polybutadiene preferentially segregate to the surface depending on the molar mass of the blend, but only the smallest polystyrene chains dominate surface‐enriched layers. Contact angle experiments reveal that the surface energy of the films is dominated by film morphology rather than the surface energy of the individual components. It is concluded that polymer chain mobility in the toluene solvent during spin casting is an important factor in controlling the surface structure.
Authors
- Matthew J. German (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3910-6377)
- Faten Al-Hazmi (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6930-9493)
- Matthew K. Sharpe (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6189-3565)
- P. Couture (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7477-6942)
- Tracey Davey (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9409-7410)
- Jake Sheriff (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2830-5319)
- Mai S.Y. Ibrahim (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0009-0000-8875-1447)
- Callum D. McAleese (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0009-0008-3155-7641)
- Robert D. Crapnell (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8701-3933)
- Marloes Peeters (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0429-8073)
- Mark Geoghegan (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9919-7357)
Institutions
- Manchester Metropolitan University (GB)
- King Abdulaziz University (SA)
- University of Surrey (GB)
- University of Jeddah (SA)
- Newcastle Dental Hospital (GB)
- Newcastle University (GB)
Publication Details
- Journal
- Macromolecular Chemistry and Physics
- Published
- 2025-06-22
- DOI
- https://doi.org/10.1002/macp.202500126
- Primary Topic
- Surface Modification and Superhydrophobicity
- Type
- article
- Field-Weighted Citation Impact
- 0.00
Funders
- Newcastle University
- King Abdulaziz University
- Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council
- Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council