Surface modification is the act of modifying the surface of a material by bringing physical, chemical or biological characteristics different from the ones originally found on the surface of a material. This modification is usually made to solid materials, but it is possible to find examples of the modification to the surface of specific liquids. The modification can be done by different methods with a view to altering a wide range of characteristics of the surface, such as: roughness,

is available). hydrophilicity,

is available). surface charge,

surface energy In surface science, surface energy (also interfacial free energy or surface free energy) quantifies the disruption of intermolecular bonds that occurs when a surface is created. In solid-state physics, surfaces must be intrinsically less energe ...

, biocompatibility and reactivity.

Surface engineering

Surface engineering Surface engineering is the sub-discipline of materials science which deals with the surface of solid matter. It has applications to chemistry, mechanical engineering, and electrical engineering (particularly in relation to semiconductor manufacturi ...

is the sub-discipline of

materials science Materials science is an interdisciplinary field of researching and discovering materials. Materials engineering is an engineering field of finding uses for materials in other fields and industries. The intellectual origins of materials sci ...

which deals with the surface of solid matter. It has applications to

chemistry Chemistry is the scientific study of the properties and behavior of matter. It is a physical science within the natural sciences that studies the chemical elements that make up matter and chemical compound, compounds made of atoms, molecules a ...

mechanical engineering Mechanical engineering is the study of physical machines and mechanism (engineering), mechanisms that may involve force and movement. It is an engineering branch that combines engineering physics and engineering mathematics, mathematics principl ...

, and

electrical engineering Electrical engineering is an engineering discipline concerned with the study, design, and application of equipment, devices, and systems that use electricity, electronics, and electromagnetism. It emerged as an identifiable occupation in the l ...

(particularly in relation to

semiconductor manufacturing Semiconductor device fabrication is the process used to manufacture semiconductor devices, typically integrated circuits (ICs) such as microprocessors, microcontrollers, and memories (such as Random-access memory, RAM and flash memory). It is a ...

Solids Solid is a state of matter where molecules are closely packed and can not slide past each other. Solids resist compression, expansion, or external forces that would alter its shape, with the degree to which they are resisted dependent upon the ...

are composed of a bulk material covered by a surface. The surface which bounds the bulk material is called the

Surface phase A surface, as the term is most generally used, is the outermost or uppermost layer of a physical object or space. It is the portion or region of the object that can first be perceived by an observer using the senses of sight and touch, and is t ...

. It acts as an interface to the surrounding environment. The bulk material in a solid is called the

Bulk phase Bulk can refer to: Industry * Bulk cargo * Bulk carrier * Bulk liquids * Bulk mail * Bulk material handling * Bulk pack, packaged bulk materials/products * Bulk purchasing * Baking * Bulk fermentation, the period after mixing when dough i ...

. The surface phase of a solid interacts with the surrounding environment. This interaction can degrade the surface phase over time.

Environmental degradation Environment most often refers to: __NOTOC__ * Natural environment, referring respectively to all living and non-living things occurring naturally and the physical and biological factors along with their chemical interactions that affect an organism ...

of the surface phase over time can be caused by

wear Wear is the damaging, gradual removal or deformation of material at solid surfaces. Causes of wear can be mechanical (e.g., erosion) or chemical (e.g., corrosion). The study of wear and related processes is referred to as tribology. Wear in ...

corrosion Corrosion is a natural process that converts a refined metal into a more chemically stable oxide. It is the gradual deterioration of materials (usually a metal) by chemical or electrochemical reaction with their environment. Corrosion engine ...

fatigue Fatigue is a state of tiredness (which is not sleepiness), exhaustion or loss of energy. It is a signs and symptoms, symptom of any of various diseases; it is not a disease in itself. Fatigue (in the medical sense) is sometimes associated wit ...

and creep. Surface engineering involves altering the properties of the Surface Phase in order to reduce the degradation over time. This is accomplished by making the surface robust to the environment in which it will be used.

Applications and Future of Surface Engineering

Surface engineering techniques are being used in the automotive, aerospace, missile, power, electronic, biomedical, textile, petroleum, petrochemical, chemical, steel, power, cement, machine tools, construction industries. Surface engineering techniques can be used to develop a wide range of functional properties, including physical, chemical, electrical, electronic, magnetic, mechanical, wear-resistant and corrosion-resistant properties at the required substrate surfaces. Almost all types of materials, including metals, ceramics, polymers, and composites can be coated on similar or dissimilar materials. It is also possible to form coatings of newer materials (e.g., met glass. beta-C₃N₄), graded deposits, multi-component deposits etc. In 1995, surface engineering was a £10 billion market in the United Kingdom. Coatings, to make surface life robust from wear and corrosion, was approximately half the market. Functionalization of Antimicrobial Surfaces is a unique technology that can be used for sterilization in health industry, self-cleaning surfaces and protection from bio films. In recent years, there has been a paradigm shift in surface engineering from age-old electroplating to processes such as vapor phase deposition, diffusion, thermal spray & welding using advanced heat sources like plasma, laser, ion, electron, microwave, solar beams, synchrotron radiation, pulsed arc, pulsed combustion, spark, friction and induction. It's estimated that loss due to wear and corrosion in the US is approximately $500 billion. In the US, there are around 9524 establishments (including automotive, aircraft, power and construction industries) who depend on engineered surfaces with support from 23,466 industries.

Surface functionalization

Surface functionalization introduces chemical

functional group In organic chemistry, a functional group is any substituent or moiety (chemistry), moiety in a molecule that causes the molecule's characteristic chemical reactions. The same functional group will undergo the same or similar chemical reactions r ...

s to a surface. This way, materials with functional groups on their surfaces can be designed from substrates with standard bulk material properties. Prominent examples can be found in semiconductor industry and biomaterial research.

Polymer Surface Functionalization

Plasma processing Plasma processing is a plasma-based material processing technology that aims at modifying the chemical and physical properties of a surface. Plasma processing techniques include: *Plasma activation * Plasma ashing * Plasma cleaning * Plasma elec ...

technologies are successfully employed for polymers surface functionalization.

References

Bibliography

* R.Chattopadhyay, ’Advanced Thermally Assisted Surface Engineering Processes’ Kluwer Academic Publishers, MA, USA (now Springer, NY), 2004, , E-. * R Chattopadhyay, ’Surface Wear- Analysis, Treatment, & Prevention’, ASM-International, Materials Park, OH, USA, 2001, . * S Konda, Flame‐based synthesis and in situ functionalization of palladium alloy nanoparticles, AIChE Journal, 2018, https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1002/aic.16368

External links

Institute of Surface Chemistry and Catalysis Ulm University
{{DEFAULTSORT:Surface Functionalization Engineering disciplines Materials science