Adhesive bonding of poly aryl phosphine-oxide polyimide polymers to surface treated aluminum : an honors thesis (HONRS 499)

Abstract

The durability of adhesively bonded aluminum using poly aryl phosphine-oxide polyimide polymers as adhesives has been investigated. The aluminum surface was prepared for bonding via reaction in acid and base solutions and by a neutralization process. The wedge geometry test was adopted for the durability studies. Crack propagation was followed for the bonded samples in order to determine the timeto- failure of the bond. The failure rate as a function of surface treatment varied in the manner: acid > base > neutral. The failure mode was determined by surface analytical spectroscopic methods including x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) and scanning electron microscopy/energy despersive x-ray analysis (SEM/EDX), and the mode of failure was found to be independent of the surface treatment. The mode of failure for all samples was found to be primarily cohesive with some adhesive failure near the edges of the samples. Overall, the poly aryl phosphine-oxide polyimide polymer was found to make a good bond with aluminum.