“…These studies * Author to whom correspondence should be addressed. and differential scanning ~a l o r i m e t r y~~ and scanning electron microscopy (see, for example, Refs 3,8,23,29,31,32 and 37). However, the most widely adopted technique for C F characterization is x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), which was used to study the effect the interaction of CF with thin resin films,27 the structural changes during PAN carbonization,' 8 9 4 9 the removal of sizing from the fibre surface,50 the surface microporosity of CF,51 the effects of hydrothermal exposure52 and fibre finish53 on fibre-matrix adhesion and the effects of ion bombardment on C F and graphitic materials.…”