Deposition and Characterisation of Plasma Polymerised Allyl Methacrylate Based Coatings

Allyl methacrylate (AMA) was deposited on aluminium using atmospheric dielectric barrier discharge plasma. AMA posseses two C?C bonds which have very different reactivities and the efficiency of the plasma on polymerising the two different kinds of double bonds was evaluated. The Fourier transform infrared spectra and the nuclear magnetic resonance spectra of the plasma coatings were compared with those of conventionally synthesised poly(AMA). The influence of the monomer feed on the ester, the vinyl and the allyl functionalities of the coatings were investigated. Plasma coatings showed lower concentration of non-reacted allyl groups than conventional poly(AMA) suggesting a more cross-linked network. Pull-off adhesion tests were performed after the deposition of the a topcoat to evaluate the potential use of the AMA based coatings as adhesion promoter.