Wetting and other physical characteristics of polycarbonate surface textured using laser ablation

•Laser causes micro/nano size pores and shallow fine-size cavities.•Crystallinity at surface is 18% after laser treatment increasing hydrophobicity.•Surface hydrophobicity improves after laser treatment.•Microhardness increases twofold after laser treatment process.•Residual stress is compressive an...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Applied surface science 2014-11, Vol.320, p.21-29
Main Authors: Yilbas, B.S., Khaled, M., Abu-Dheir, N., Al-Aqeeli, N., Said, S.A.M., Ahmed, A.O.M., Varanasi, K.K., Toumi, Y.K.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Condensed matter: electronic structure, electrical, magnetic, and optical properties
Condensed matter: structure, mechanical and thermal properties
Contact angle
Cross-disciplinary physics: materials science
rheology
Exact sciences and technology
Hydrophobicity
Laser ablation
Lasers
Mathematical analysis
Physics
Polycarbonate glass
Polycarbonates
Residual stress
Scratch resistance
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Summary:•Laser causes micro/nano size pores and shallow fine-size cavities.•Crystallinity at surface is 18% after laser treatment increasing hydrophobicity.•Surface hydrophobicity improves after laser treatment.•Microhardness increases twofold after laser treatment process.•Residual stress is compressive and scratch hardness is 110±11MPa.•Optical transmittance reduces by 15% after laser treatment. Surface texturing of polycarbonate glass is carried out for improved hydrophobicity via controlled laser ablation at the surface. Optical and physical characteristics of the laser treated layer are examined using analytical tools including optical, atomic force, and scanning electron microscopes, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, and X-ray diffraction. Contact angle measurements are carried out to assess the hydrophobicity of the laser treated surface. Residual stress in the laser ablated layer is determined using the curvature method, and microhardnes and scratch resistance are analyzed using a micro-tribometer. Findings reveal that textured surfaces compose of micro/nano pores with fine cavities and increase the contact angle to hydrophobicity such a way that contact angles in the range of 120° are resulted. Crystallization of the laser treated surface reduces the optical transmittance by 15%, contributes to residual stress formation, and enhances the microhardness by twice the value of untreated polycarbonate surface. In addition, laser treatment improves surface scratch resistance by 40%.
ISSN:0169-4332
1873-5584
DOI:10.1016/j.apsusc.2014.09.052