Effects of static electricity and fabrication parameters on PVDF film properties

Degree of crystallinity and beta-phase fraction are important factors in determining electroactive polymers performance. In the present work, effects of intrinsic static electricity, substrate type, PVDF solution concentration and drying temperature on beta-phase fraction and degree of crystallinity in fabricated PVDF films were studied using XRD, Raman spectroscopy and FTIR techniques. In particular, this paper investigates the influence of static electricity on PVDF film properties for the first time. The results show that discharging static electricity from the PVDF solution is highly effective in reducing the amount of residual solvent. It was found that a lower amount of residual solvent and higher drying temperature resulted in a higher degree of crystallinity. Further, a high fraction of beta phase was observed in all PVDF films due to more polar solvent effect that it was hardly affected by other parameters such as static electricity.