Abstract
Fullerene derivatives were coated onto amorphous carbon substrates to modify carbon material surfaces, which have a great influence on the mechanical properties of carbon/epoxy composite such as carbon fiber reinforced plastics (CFRP). We previously reported that surface free energy of amorphous carbon was varied by coating fullerene derivatives onto amorphous carbon (a-C) substrates. However, the Adhesion strength of epoxy resin on the modified a-C substrates has not been clarified. In this study, mirror finished a-C wafers were used as carbon substrates. Fullerene derivatives were coated onto a-C substrates by spin-coating method. We investigated surface characteristics of the fullerene-coated a-C substrates by analysis of three surface energy components, dispersive, polar and hydrogen bonding force. Moreover, we evaluated the adhesion strength of the interface between the fullerene-coated a-C surface and the cured epoxy resin film by means of SAICAS method. These results indicated that there was a favorable correlation between the adhesion strength and the surface free energy on the fullerenecoated a-C substrate. We concluded that interfacial adhesion strength of carbon/epoxy could be improved by the coating of fullerene derivatives onto a carbon materials surface.
