Capillary devices for determination of surface characteristics and contact angles and methods for using same
First Claim
1. A reference channel capillary device comprising:
- an open capillary channel embedded within a surface of a supportive materials system, the capillary channel having a cross sectional geometry sufficient to create an open channel, the capillary device being configured to form a closed capillary against an adjacent surface, wherein said supportive materials system comprises a thermoplastic elastomer plasticized with mineral oil.
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Abstract
Devices are presented which allow determination of unknown surface properties through the creation of a channel capillary, comprised in part of the subject surface or surfaces, and measurement of the capillary pressure created by a test fluid within the resultant channel. In various embodiments of the invention, a channel is created in a reference material which is bonded, through some mechanism, to the test surface in order to create a narrow capillary channel. In other embodiments of the invention, the capillary channel is created with test surfaces on either side of standoff strips which space the surfaces a precise distance from one another. Methods are presented for using these capillaries through immersion, along their length, in a bath of test fluid, such that the resultant fluid level provides a measure of capillary pressure. Being, in part, a consequence of the contact angle between the test fluid and the surface or surfaces under consideration, the capillary pressure is a convenient measure of surface properties inherently related to printability, affinity for adhesives, surface contamination by foreign substances, surface roughness, and the like. Devices are presented which allow measurement of test fluid height within the capillary, both in situations where a static equilibrium is achieved, and in situations where a dynamic contact angle is operative as the fluid rises or falls within the capillary.
40 Citations
29 Claims
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1. A reference channel capillary device comprising:
an open capillary channel embedded within a surface of a supportive materials system, the capillary channel having a cross sectional geometry sufficient to create an open channel, the capillary device being configured to form a closed capillary against an adjacent surface, wherein said supportive materials system comprises a thermoplastic elastomer plasticized with mineral oil. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17)
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18. A reference channel capillary device comprising:
an open capillary channel embedded within a supportive materials system, the capillary channel having a cross sectional geometry sufficient to create an open channel, the capillary device being configured to form a closed capillary against an adjacent surface, the capillary device further being configured to be placed against a curved adjacent surface for forming the closed capillary, the supportive materials system being made from a material comprising a thermoplastic elastomer plasticized with mineral oil. - View Dependent Claims (19, 20, 21)
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22. A reference channel capillary device comprising:
an open capillary channel defined by a planar surface of a supportive materials system, the capillary device being configured to form a closed capillary against an adjacent planar surface, the capillary channel having a rectangular cross section with a depth of less than about 0.02 inches and a width greater than about 10 times the depth, the supportive materials system being made from a material comprising a polymer, a glass, a semiconductor, a ceramic, a metal, a thermoplastic elastomer plasticized with mineral oil, or mixtures thereof. - View Dependent Claims (23, 24, 25)
- 26. A spacer wall capillary device comprising a first spacer element spaced from a second spacer element, the spacer elements being configured to be attached to two opposing adjacent surfaces, the spacer elements holding the surfaces apart thereby producing a capillary, said spacer elements comprise a thermoplastic elastomer plasticized with mineral oil.
Specification