THE EFFECT OF AN EXTERNALLY ADDED CHARGE CONTROL AGENT ON CONTACT CHARGING BETWEEN POLYMERS

The triboelectrification resulting from rolling-sliding contact between selected polymer materials was experimentally investigated by adding small quantities of a powdered charge control agent (CCA) to various mixtures of polymers. The CCA consisted of a mixture of tri-methyl-phenyl-ammonium and tetra-phenyl-borate powders. It was externally added to a batch consisting of two or three kinds of polymer particles having diameters between 3 to 5 mm. The polymers tested were PET, LDPE, HDPE, PP and PVC. The neutralized polymer particles were rolled in an HDPE bottle in which the inner wall was either clean or almost uniformly coated by the CCA powder. Using a clean HDPE bottle, the contact charging of the particles of any of the polymers was found to be negligible. In contrast the combination of LDPE and HDPE triboelectrified in a bottle with the CCA showed remarkable change in charge to mass ratios; positively charged LDPE (+ 18.5 muC/kg) and negatively charged HDPE (-19.4 muC/kg). The powdered charge control agent selectively sticks to a particular polymer and results in a net charge of specific polarity.