Plasma technologies at atmospheric pressure (AP) promise efficient integration into industrial manufacturing technology and save considerable investment and maintenance costs. The development of new fields of application of AP techniques increasingly requires the provision of adapted, large‐area plasma sources. The linearly extended direct current (DC) arc plasma source, long arc generator principle (LARGE) for short, with a working width of up to 350 mm was developed at the Fraunhofer IWS for the large area plasma surface treatment. In contrast to other jet‐based AP sources arrays, the LARGE plasma source has a very long afterglow flame length, which makes it possible to efficiently treat surfaces over the range ±40 mm. Especially for large‐area plasma applications, commercial jet nozzle arrays are very complex to control and require more than one power generators which increases the equipment cost. In this paper we discuss selected application fields, namely the rapid (up to 50 m/min) removal of oil films on aluminium sheets, the large‐area functionalization (removal of release agents) of carbon‐fibre reinforced plastic (CFRP) materials, and the deposition of SiO2 adhesive layers on titanium to improve adhesion in the structural bonding of these materials.
Summary
Efficient production of carbon fibres using new technologies
Innovative process technologies for carbonization of precursor fibres, which can substitute conventional oven technologies and raise the efficiency of carbon fibre production are presented. The process technologies are based on the substitution of convective heat transfer by microwave plasma or direct fiber heating. In microwave‐assisted plasma treatment, the heating of the fibres is carried out both by microwave absorption in the fibre volume and energy input into the fibre surface by means of the plasma species. During electrical carbonization, the fibres are heated by means of an electrical current flow. The processes can be used separately, one after the other (also in combination with conventional furnace technology) or as hybrid processes.
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