Eur. Phys. J. Appl. Phys. 49, 13111 (2010)
https://doi.org/10.1051/epjap/2009199

Epoxy based composite surface analysis. A plasma treatment for wettability evolution

École Louis de Broglie, Groupe ECAM, Campus de Ker Lann, 35170 Bruz, France

Corresponding author: coulon@ecole-debroglie.fr

Received: 29 June 2009
Accepted: 5 November 2009
Published online: 11 December 2009

Abstract

Manufactured carbon/epoxy composite surfaces were analysed before and after CF₄ plasma treatment in order to study their wettability with the aim to master adhesion properties. Roughness and XPS surface composition on raw and plasma treated surfaces have been correlated to surface free energy measurements. The analytical tools were first validated on a flat epoxy resin before being tested and compared on rough industrial carbon/epoxy composite samples. The results reveal that these analytical techniques can be reproducible and relevant on manufactured composite for new surface treatment studies.