ToF-SIMS has been used to analyse an aluminium surface treated with a vegetable oil using a mercapto silane as a coupling agent between the aluminium substrate and the vegetable oil. The coupling between the vegetable oil and the mercapto silane was obtained through a photoinduced thiol-ene reaction using UV-radiation. The ToF-SIMS results show that the desired thiolene reaction has taken place between the unsaturated parts of the vegetable oil and the thiol groups of the mercapto silane via the thiol-ene reaction forming a surface film. (C) 2004 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.