Plasma co-polymerisation of ethylene, 1,3-butadiene and ammonia mixtures: Amine content and water stability

Plasma co-polymerisation of ethylene, 1,3-butadiene and ammonia mixtures in a low pressure capacitively coupled r.f. glow discharge is investigated to produce amine-rich stable plasma polymer films for biomedical applications. Deposition kinetics, surface chemistry and water stability of films are studied as a function of r.f. power and precursor gas flow ratios. The surface primary amine content is evaluated by chemical derivatisation with 4-trifluoromethyl benzaldehyde followed by XPS; and stability by profilometric measurements of film thickness loss after 24h of immersion in DI water. Multivariate regression analyses are used to obtain empirical models for N content and stability. Results show a clear improvement in performance in films containing butadiene as compared to the ethylene based films. •Plasma co-polymerisation of ethylene, 1,3-butadiene and ammonia is investigated.•Effect of plasma parameters on films' amine content and water stability is studied.•Empirical models for film nitrogen content and stability are obtained.•Butadiene based films have higher amine selectivity and increased stability.