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Related Experiment Video

Updated: May 16, 2026

Reductive Electropolymerization of a Vinyl-containing Poly-pyridyl Complex on Glassy Carbon and Fluorine-doped Tin Oxide Electrodes

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Published on: January 30, 2015

Contact de-electrification of electrostatically charged polymers.

Siowling Soh¹, Sen Wai Kwok, Helena Liu

¹Department of Chemistry and Chemical Biology, Harvard University, 12 Oxford Street, Cambridge, Massachusetts 02138, United States.

Journal of the American Chemical Society

|November 17, 2012

Summary

Contact de-electrification is a newly discovered process where like-charged polymers discharge upon contact. This rapid charge transfer to atmospheric gas molecules occurs due to exceeding dielectric breakdown strength at the contact point.

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Area of Science:

Materials Science
Triboelectricity
Polymer Physics

Background:

Contact electrification of polymers is not fully understood, with multiple charge movement mechanisms potentially involved.
A novel discharge mechanism, termed 'contact de-electrification,' is investigated in this study.

Purpose of the Study:

To describe and validate the contact de-electrification mechanism in charged polymers.
To investigate the generality of this discharge process across different polymer types and atmospheric conditions.

Main Methods:

Experimentally charging polymer beads and flat slabs (polyamide 6/6, polyoxymethylene, polytetrafluoroethylene, polyamide-imide) to similar polarities.
Observing discharge upon contact between like-charged polymer samples.
Analyzing charge transfer to ionized atmospheric gas molecules using a Faraday cup.

Main Results:

Both positively and negatively charged polymers (Nylon, Delrin, Teflon, Torlon) rapidly discharged upon contact.
Discharge occurred irrespective of whether the contacting polymers were of the same or different materials.
Charge transfer to ionized atmospheric gas molecules was detected, supporting the proposed mechanism.

Conclusions:

Contact de-electrification is a general mechanism for like-charged polymers, involving atmospheric gas ionization due to increased electric fields at contact.
This process rapidly discharges polymers and appears to be independent of polymer type and atmospheric composition.