The grafting of methyl methacrylate onto ultrahigh molecular weight polyethylene fiber by plasma and UV treatment

In this study, ultrahigh molecular weight polyethylene (UHMWPE) fibers were treated with a gas plasma of argon for 5 min. The plasma-treated UHMWPE fibers were put into a methyl methacrylate solution with n-hexane or chloroform as the solvent and irradiated with a UV lamp. The UV irradiation time was changed. The surface topography that had a significant change on the fiber was seen by scanning electron microscopy. Infrared spectra (IR) and electron spectroscopy for chemical analysis (ESCA) were also studied to probe the surface atomic chemistry and to identify the functional groups and their relative changes with treatment conditions. The grafting content was estimated by the titration of esterfication method. It was found that the grafting amount for the system with chloroform as the solvent is larger than that for the system with n-hexane as the solvent.