Adhesion study of silicone coatings: the interaction of thickness, modulus and shear rate on adhesion force

Interactions between coating thickness, modulus and shear rate on pseudobarnacle adhesion to a platinum-cured silicone coating were studied using a statistical experimental design. A combined design method was used for two mixture components and two process variables. The two mixture components, vinyl end-terminated polydimethylsiloxanes (V21: MW=6 kg mole(-1) and V35: MW=4 9.5 kg mole(-1), Gelest Inc.) were mixed at five different levels to vary the modulus. The dry coating thickness was varied from 160 - 740 microm and shear tests were performed at four different shear rates (2, 7, 12, and 22 microm s(-1)). The results of the statistical analysis showed that the mixture components were significant factors on shear stress, showing an interaction with the process variable. For the soft silicone coating based on the high molecular weight polydimethylsiloxane (E=0.08 MPa), shear stress significantly increased as coating thickness decreased, while shear rate slightly impacted shear force especially at 160 microm coating thickness. As the modulus was increased (E=1.3 MPa), more force was required to detach the pseudobarnacle from the coatings, but thickness and rate dependence on shear stress became less important.