Surface properties of superfine alumina trihydrate after surface modification with stearic acid

The surface properties of superfine alumina trihydrate (ATH) after surface modification were studied by measuring the contact angle, active ratio, oil adsorption, total organic carbon, adsorption ratio, and Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectrum. The contact angle increased initially and then slowly decreased with an increase of the amount of stearic acid. However, the surface free energy decreased initially and then increased. Surface modification with stearic acid or sodium stearate can benefit from elevating temperature. The base surface tension component and the free energy of Lewis acid-base both declined sharply following the surface modification. Excess stearic acid was physically adsorbed in the form of multilayer adsorption, and an interaction between oxygen on the ATH surface and hydroxyl in stearic acid was subsequently determined. Our results further indicated that the contact angle and adsorption ratio can be used as control indicators for surface modification compared with active ratio, oil adsorption and total organic carbon.