/sci/ - Science & Math

How does charging by friction works, on a molecular level? As far as I know, electrons are transferred from one object to another, but I read on one physics textbook that it's actually ions that are transferred. Friction between materials supposedly break the molecules on one material, the positive ion stays on one material and the negative ion goes to the other.

I'm highly suspicious of this, since intramolecular bonds are usually very strong and I couldn't find the same "molecule-breaking" explanation on other textbooks, only the usual "electrons are transferred" without any more explanations.

So, which one is correct? Or more importantly, how could I calculate by myself the energy required to remove an electron from an atom inside a molecule, and the energy required to break a molecule into its ions?

Pic related, thanks in advance.