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Tuning the wicking and wettability properties of PET textiles by DBD or a remote atmospheric RF torch: A comparison

par Demaude, Annaelle ;Inturri, Rosanna;Satriano, Cristina;Leroy, Perrine ;Reniers, François
Référence Plasma processes and polymers
Publication Publié, 2021-05-01

Article révisé par les pairs

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Résumé :

Textile industry is constantly searching for easy and rapid ways to improve the properties of textiles. In this matter, plasma treatments have already proven to be an efficient and green solution, as they proceed in a dry environment and require minimal use of chemicals. To date, most of the work on the subject has been performed with low-pressure plasmas. Recently, atmospheric plasmas have received increasing interest, especially for industrial applications. Indeed, the possibility to avoid the use of pumping systems makes this technology easily implementable in continuous in-line processes. For many applications, the treatment aims at modifying the textile surface to increase the overall hydrophilicity. The latter is often probed by the water contact angle, but this does not always reflect the global hydrophilic behavior of the textile as a three-dimensional material. A complementary study of the wicking properties is important to better reflect the penetration of liquids into the textile, but it is poorly reported in the literature. The present work aims at increasing the water uptake of polyethylene terephthalate (PET) textile by direct or remote plasma treatment, which are the two main trends in this field. For this purpose, a dielectric barrier discharge (DBD) and a radiofrequency plasma torch at atmospheric pressure are used, respectively. Different plasma parameters are varied and their respective effect on the wicking properties of the fabric, assessed by an absorbency test developed ad hoc, are correlated to their surface chemical composition determined by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy. These results are compared with the possible changes in wetting of the fiber surface witnessed by water contact angles measured on PET foil samples submitted to the same plasma treatments. Complete wicking of water in PET textile can be obtained after 20 or 10 s of torch treatment with pure Ar plasma or Ar/O2 mixture, respectively. However, a comparable effect is detected, after 30 s of DBD Ar plasma treatment, under the used experimental conditions. Besides, the addition of O2 to the discharge has an opposite effect on the fabric wicking. These results are discussed in terms of the peculiar processes in surface activation and modification of the fabric surface triggered by the two different plasma technologies.