Influence of Low Temperature Plasma Treatment on the surface, Optical and DC Electrical Properties of jute

Abstract

Low temperature plasma (LTP) treatment, a kind of environmentally friendly surface modification technique, was applied to ligno-cellulosic jute fibre with the use of nonpolymerizing gas, namely argon, at various discharge power levels and exposure times with a definite flow rate. The surface morphology, optical and direct current (DC) electrical properties of both raw and plasma treated jute were studied. By means of scanning electron microscopy (SEM), the influence of treatment time and discharge power on the surface morphology of the surface of jute fibres were studied and were compared with that of raw jute. SEM microphotographs reveal that the roughness of the fibre surfaces increases with the increase of discharge power and exposure time. This is caused due to the bombardment of high energetic ions on the fibre surface and the fibres become sputtered. Ultraviolet visible (UV-Vis.) spectroscopic analysis reveals that the band gap of jute increases with the increase of discharge power as well as exposure time. The change in the DC electrical resistivity of the LTP-treated jute fibre was in good agreement with the above findings.