2018 Volume 126 Issue 10 Pages 839-842
The morphology and peeling behavior of poly(vinyl alcohol) (PVA) derivatives in water is investigated. The uneven surface is observed through the tapping mode of scanning probe microscopy; it originates from PVA molecules adsorbed on the solid surface. The force curve shows an extension, which results in PVA peeling. The extension agrees well with the worm-like chain model. The persistence length of all PVA derivatives used in this study approximates the 2 C–C bonds (0.31 nm). The distribution of the contour length is plotted for each molecule based on fifty peeling tests. It shows that the conformation of PVA derivatives adsorbed on the solid surface reflects that of PVA derivatives in an aqueous solvent. These results indicate that the slight difference of functional groups affects the flexibility of the molecule and the adsorption behavior onto the solid surface is different.