Particle adhesion to elastomeric substrates and elastomeric substrates with semi-rigid coatings

The force needed to remove micrometer-size polystyrene particles from elastomeric substrates having Young's moduli of 3.8 and 320 MPa was measured using atomic force techniques. It was found that the removal force was approximately an order of magnitude less for the more rigid substrate than for the more compliant substrate. In both cases the removal force was independent of applied load. However, when the more compliant material was overcoated with the stiffer material, the particle removal force was found to increase with increasing pressure, with the limit at low pressure commensurate with the removal force observed for the stiffer substrate and commensurate with the more compliant material at higher pressures. The results are interpreted in terms of the penetration depth of particle asperities into the substrates.