How Do Silanes Affect the Lubricating Properties of Cationic Double Chain Surfactant on Silica Surfaces ?

Muriel Beauvais (1) , Laurence Serreau (1) , Caroline Heitz (1) , Etienne Barthel (1)

1 SVI - Surface du Verre et Interfaces

The effect of an aminosilane on the lubricant properties of a C18 double-chained cationic surfactant has been investigated in the context of glass fiber forming process. The surfactant adsorption was studied on silica by Fourier Transform Infrared (FT-IR) spectroscopy in the Attenuated Total Reflexion (ATR) mode as a function of the aminosilane concentration in an organic water based formulation (sizing) used to coat the glass fibers during the process. A reciprocating ball-on-plate tribometer was used to compare friction properties of silica in contact with the aminosilane-surfactant mixture and in presence of each component of the sizing. Surface forces were measured between silica and an Atomic Force Microscope (AFM) silicon nitride tip in the sizing and in the pure cationic surfactant solution. The aminosilane on its own has no lubricant property and reduces or even suppresses the cationic surfactant adsorption on silica. However, the silica-silica contact is lubricated even if the infrared spectroscopy does not detect any surfactant adsorption. The repeated contacts and shear due to the friction experiment itself induce accumulation, organization and compactness of surfactant bilayers.

Domaines: Matériaux

Muriel Beauvais, Laurence Serreau, Caroline Heitz, Etienne Barthel. How Do Silanes Affect the Lubricating Properties of Cationic Double Chain Surfactant on Silica Surfaces ?. Journal of Colloid and Interface Science, 2009, pp.178. ⟨hal-00379275⟩