Comparison of the Growth and Thermal Properties of Nonwoven Polymers after Atomic Layer Deposition and Vapor Phase Infiltration

The growth mechanism of Atomic Layer Deposition (ALD) on polymeric surfaces differs from growth on inorganic solid substrates, such as silicon wafer or glass. In this paper, we report the growth experiments of Al2O3 and ZnO on nonwoven poly-L-lactic acid (PLLA), polyethersulphone (PES) and cellulose acetate (CA) fibres. Material growth in both ALD and infiltration mode was studied. The structures were examined with a scanning electron microscope (SEM), scanning transmission electron microscope (STEM), attenuated total reflectance-fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (ATR-FTIR) and 27Al nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR). Furthermore, thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) and differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) analysis were used to explore the effect of ALD deposition on the thermal properties of the CA polymer. According to the SEM, STEM and ATR-FTIR analysis, the growth of Al2O3 was more uniform than ZnO on each of the polymers studied. In addition, according to ATR-FTIR spectroscopy, the infiltration resulted in interactions between the polymers and the ALD precursors. Thermal analysis (TGA/DSC) revealed a slower depolymerization process and better thermal resistance upon heating both in ALD-coated and infiltrated fibres, more pronounced on the latter type of structures, as seen from smaller endothermic peaks on TA.