The impact of atmospheric air plasma treatment on the polyfunctional end-use polyester fabric using new synthetic pyrazole dye

Abstract

Before gluing, bonding, and painting, a variety of materials' surfaces can be modified using the widely used plasma treatment technique. These materials include plastics, glass, metals, and wood. Materials' physical and chemical properties are changed in an environmentally responsible way to enhance or confer particular qualities. The recently used technology known as low-temperature atmospheric pressure plasma (LTAPP) allows heat-sensitive materials to be surface modified in a simple, one-step process. Polymer-based materials are frequently surface modified using LTAPP treatment to improve adhesion, printability, and surface sterility. Polyester's superior mechanical and physical qualities have led to its widespread use as a technical textile and garment material in the form of fibers, films, and plastics. Its limited versatility in terms of end use has been caused by its poor surface properties as the hydrophobic nature of polyester surface, roughness, the crystallinity, and lack of dyeability which are the main drawback restricting its use in different textile applications especially during wet treatments unlike natural fibers. In order to increase the fabric's hydrophilicity and dyeability, the surface of a polyester fabric was altered in this study using atmospheric pressure plasma treatment with atmospheric plasma jet and dielectric barrier discharge (APJ-DBD) technology in air. The primary obstacles in making dielectric barrier discharge (DBD) plasma treatment suitable for industrial purposes are the extended duration of treatment and the utilization of elevated voltage levels. The combination between the atmospheric plasma jet and the dielectric barrier discharge reduces the optimal treatment time to 1 min and the applied voltage to 3.3 kV. After being exposed to oxygen plasma species for a brief period of time (between 30 and 300 s), and were analyzed using an X-ray diffraction machine, an X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), static contact angle, and a scanning electron microscope (SEM) to investigate changes in the morphology and chemical nature of the surface, respectively. Fabric wettability increased as a result of plasma treatment, which also increased the fabric's surface roughness, as demonstrated by SEM and X-ray diffraction. The contact angle decreases by increasing the treatment time. The dyeability of untreated and plasma-treated samples was examined with respect to washing, rubbing, perspiration, sublimation, and light fastness. Additionally, color strength was examined. Adequately, compared to the untreated fabric, polyester treated with plasma showed improved dyeing performances. The technical reactivity of poly (ethylene-terephthalate) (PET) fabrics was found to be effectively increased by atmospheric air plasma treatment, creating new avenues for surface modification in light of the expanding environmental and energy-saving concerns.