The Fragmentation Test Applied to Adhesion Measurements and Microstructural Characterization in Plasma Pre-treated Metallized Plastic Webs

摘要

A theoretical and experimental approach based on cracking analysis of stressed films (fragmentation test) has been applied to the study of interface dominant properties of metallized plastic flexible films. The test was found to be accurate for quantitative aluminium adhesion measurements and was used for an evaluation of the effect of different plasma pre-treatments on the final properties of the metallized poly(ethylene) films. The test proved to be a powerful method for better understanding both the adhesion and the mechanical and microstructural properties of thin metal films. A clear improvement of aluminium adhesion was demonstrated for increasing plasma pre-treatment times up to 0.8 s, and microstructural features were deduced from the test data.