Surface modification of polytetrafluoroethylene film using the atmospheric pressure glow discharge in air

Abstract

The atmospheric pressure glow discharge (APGD) is more promising in industrial applications compared with glow discharges in a gas other than air or in low-pressure air, which needs an expensive vacuum system. In this paper, the APGD and dielectric barrier discharge (DBD) are generated in atmospheric air using a power-frequency voltage source, and the transition from DBD to APGD is achieved by varying the electrode arrangement. The differences between their discharge characteristics are shown by measurement of their electrical discharge parameters and observation of light-emission phenomena. The effects of APGD and DBD on polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) surface modification are studied. The surface properties are characterized by contact angle measurement, x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy and scanning electron microscopy. It is found that the APGD and DBD treatments modify the PTFE surface in both morphology and composition. APGD is more effective in PTFE surface modification than DBD as it can modify the surface more uniformly, implant more oxygen atoms into the surface and make the contact angle decline to a lower level. The experimental results are discussed.

Electrostatic properties of PE and PTFE subjected to atmospheric pressure plasma treatment; correlation of experimental results with atomistic modeling

“…The PTFE showed to be rather resistant to the APGD. Significant oxidation of PTFE by APGD in air has been reported, but only for exposure times of 20 to 120 minutes [15], while long exposure times to an oxygen plasma (> 15 mins.) showed after some initial oxidation, the PTFE was chemically similar to the control [16].…”

Electric winds driven by time oscillating corona discharges

“…Unlike conventional forms of airflow control (e.g., fans and blowers) which require large moving parts and are often slow and noisy, electric gas actuators have fast response times, small size, and no moving parts. Consequently, electric winds can address problems that challenge conventional forms of gas actuation: controlling boundary layer dynamics in aeronautics 1-3 , improving heat transfer in confined spaces [4][5][6] , modifying surface properties 7,8 , and removing atmospheric contaminants [9][10][11] .…”

Silver Loading on DBD Plasma-Modified Woven PET Surface for Antimicrobial Property Improvement

“…Atomic oxygen, which is formed from the dissociation of oxygen molecules by electron impact, is believed to be the main reactive species responsible for this oxygen inclusion [19,23]. However, excitation and dissociation of nitrogen molecules also lead to a number of additional reaction paths that can produce additional atomic oxygen [24]. This can be experimentally confirmed by the increase in polar C-O and O-C=O groups on the woven PET surface after the air plasma treatment, as shown in the next section.…”