Surface Modification Of Polyester Fabrics Research Articles

Surface Modification of Polyester Fabric by Non-Thermal Plasma Treatment

In the present study it was carried out a surface modification of polyester fabric by plasma treatment with aim of providing hidrophilicity to fabric. In the process it were used three different gaseous atmosphere with mixtures of argon, nitrogen and/or oxygen [(1) Ar + N2 (4:2), (2) Ar + N2 + O2 (4:2:2) and N2 + O2 (2:0.6)] and maintained others parameters such as pressure, current and time of treatment fixed at 1.35 mBar, 0.08 A and 30 minutes, respectively. The plasma treatment was monitored by optical emission spectroscopy (OES) to identify the species presents in the plasma reactor. Chemical changes in the fabric surface after plasma treatments were determined by Fourier Transform Infrared (FTIR) and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). Wicking properties were used to evaluate hydrophilicity of the fabric. Wicking measurement showed that the hydrophilicity of polyester fabric was remarkably improved after treatment and was explained by XPS analysis indicating higher presence of functional groups containing nitrogen and oxygen.

Surface modification of polyester fabrics by enzyme treatment

In this study, the effect of enzymatic hydrolysis using lipase and cutinase on poly(ethyleneterephthalate) (PET) fabrics was investigated in an attempt to improve the hydrophilicity of these fabrics. The hydrolytic activity of the enzymes was expressed for variations in pH levels, temperatures, enzyme concentrations, and treatment times. The effects of using a nonionic surfactant were examined by measuring moisture regain and surface wettability. Finally, the fabric characteristics that were affected by enzyme treatment were evaluated by tensile strength and scanning electron microscopy. The optimal treatment conditions for lipase were determined to be a pH of 4.2, a temperature of 50 °C, a lipase concentration of 100 %, and a treatment time of 90 min; those for cutinase were determined to be a pH of 9.0, a temperature of 50 °C, a cutinase concentration of 100 %, and a treatment time of 60 min. At optimal enzymatic treatment conditions, we got the significant results of increase on the moisture regain and the water contact angle (WCA) and water absorbency effectively decreased. Triton X-100 facilitated cutinase hydrolysis on PET fabrics; however, it was ineffective for lipase. With enzymatic treatment, the tensile strength did not decrease.

Surface modification of polyester fabrics for inkjet printing with atmospheric-pressure air/Ar plasma

Without any preprocessing, polyester fabric has a lower ability to hold on water and inks due to the smooth morphology and chemistry property of polyester fibers. Therefore, patterns directly printed with pigment inks have poor color yields and bleed easily. Plasma surface treatment of polyester fabrics was carried out in composite atmosphere with air and 10% Ar under different experimental conditions. After plasma treatment the samples were printed with pigment inks. The results show that surface-modified polyester fabrics exhibited enhanced color yields and excellent pattern sharpness. SEM and XPS analyses indicated that this improved color performance was mainly contributed by not only the etching effect but also oxygen-containing polar groups induced onto fiber surfaces through plasma treatment. Thereby the surface modification of polyester fabrics using air/Ar plasma offers a potential way to fabric pretreatment for pigment inkjet printing with the advantages of environmental friendly and energy saving over traditional pretreatment methods.

Pigment Inkjet Printing Performance of Polyester Fabrics Surface-modified by Atmospheric Plasma

In order to improve the pigment inkjet printing performance of polyester fabrics, surface modification of polyester fabric was carried out with atmospheric air plasma under different experimental conditions. The treated samples were printed with magenta pigment ink. SEM and XPS analysis indicated that the enhanced color performance was mainly contributed by not only the etching effect but also oxygen-containing polar groups induced onto fiber surfaces through plasma treatment. Thereby the surface modification of polyester fabrics using atmospheric-pressure air plasma offers a potential way to fabric pretreatment for pigment inkjet printing with the advantages of environmental friendly and energy saving over traditional pretreatment methods.

Penetration depth of atmospheric pressure plasma surface modification into multiple layers of polyester fabrics

Penetration depth of plasma surface modification of polyester fabrics was investigated. An eight-layer stack of woven polyester fabrics was exposed to a helium/oxygen atmospheric pressure plasma jet. Water-absorption time was used to evaluate surface hydrophilicity on the top and the bottom sides of each fabric layer and water capillary rise height was recorded as a measure of modification effectiveness for each fabric layer. Surface morphology and chemical compositions of each fabric layer in the stack were analyzed by atomic force microscopy (AFM) and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). After atmospheric pressure plasma jet treatment, the top side of the polyester fabric became more hydrophilic. The penetration of plasma surface modification into the fabric layers was deeper for fabrics with larger average pore sizes. It was found that helium/oxygen atmospheric pressure plasma jet was able to penetrate 8 layers of polyester fabrics with pore sizes of 200 μm.

Surface modification of polyester fabric by corona discharge irradiation

Polyester fabric was treated by corona discharge irradiation at different voltages. The treated fabric showed increased wicking and hydrophilic properties and the properties can be preserved for a long time. Dyeing of the treated fabric showed that dyeing speed and the dye-uptake were improved. Surface affinity between the treated fabric surface with modified starch sizing was also confirmed to be increased. This is generally useful for the sizing of polyester staple yarn and the polyester fabric dyeing. All the results are supposed due to the improved hydrophilic properties produced by the corona discharge treatment.