Wettability characteristics of poly(ethylene terephthalate) films treated by atmospheric pressure plasma and ultraviolet excimer light

Abstract

Two dry processes, atmospheric pressure plasma (APP) exposure and 172 nm ultraviolet (UV) excimer light irradiation, were carried out to enhance the hydrophilic nature of poly(ethylene terephthalate) (PET) film. The wettability change in the PET film surface after the processes were carried out was recorded by the wetting force measurements employing the Wilhelmy method. After the dry processes, drastic decreases in the advancing and receding contact angles of water were observed, especially for the APP exposure. The advancing angle on the treated PET surface was found to increase by rinsing with water or aging in air, whereas the receding one remained almost the same. The hydrophobic recovery diminished more rapidly for the UV-treated film. Surface characterizations of the PET film were performed. We discuss the influence of the dry processes on the physicochemical properties of the PET surface.

Reactive Extrusion of Polyethylene Terephthalate Waste and Investigation of Its Thermal and Mechanical Properties after Treatment

“…The use of such catalysts in large scale may cause pollution due to their toxic nature [5]. The properties of PET can be modulated by treating it with suitable reagents or dry processes for use in various applications [32,33]. The wettability or hydrophilic property of PET was enhanced using two dry processes, namely, atmospheric pressure plasma and ultraviolet excimer light [32].…”

“…The properties of PET can be modulated by treating it with suitable reagents or dry processes for use in various applications [32,33]. The wettability or hydrophilic property of PET was enhanced using two dry processes, namely, atmospheric pressure plasma and ultraviolet excimer light [32]. Reactive extrusion was used to modify the rheological and mechanical properties of PET by treating with acrylic epoxy resin as the chain extender [33].…”

Surface Modification of Polyethylene Terephthalate (PET) by 172-nm Excimer Lamp

“…Several polymers have been modified by using UV excimer lamps at different wavelengths, such as 126 nm using Ar 2 *, [15] 172 nm using Xe 2 *, [16][17][18] and 222 nm using KrCl* [19] in various gas environments. Additionally, vacuum ultraviolet treatments using Xe 2 * excimer lamps were utilized to improve the bond strength of the flip chip and three dimensional (3D) interconnections.…”

Experimental Analysis of Detergency Phenomena and Investigation of a Next-generation Detergency System

“…The sessile drop contact angle is not an accurate angle at three-phase boundary 4,5 . Moreover, this method cannot be used to measure contact angles on extremely small samples such as single fibers.…”