Plasma treatment of textile fibers*
Hartwig Höcker
Deutsches Wollforschungsinstitut an der RWTH Aachen
e.V., Veltmanplatz 8, D-52062 Aachen, Germany
Abstract: Low-temperature plasma technologyboth glow discharge
under reduced pressure as well as barrier discharge under normal pressureare
well established in different industrial applications. Since recently,
however, the plasma technology is being introduced in textile industry
as well. Fields of application are desizing, functionalizing, and design
of surface properties of textile fibers. Plasma technology is suitable
to modify the chemical structure as well as the topography of the surface
of the material.
Examples of natural as well as man-made fibers prove the enormous potential
of plasma treatment of textile materials. It has proven to be successful
in shrink-resist treatment of wool with a simultaneously positive effect
on the dyeing and printing.
Not only the chemical structure of the surface is modified using different
plasma gases but also the topography of the surface. A highly hydrophobic
surface with a particular surface topography in contact with water is
extremely dust- and dirt-repellent and hence should be also repellent
to bacteria and fungi.
Man-made fibers to be used under chemical stress are modified with
diffusion-barrier layers on their surfaces without modifying the bulk
properties; hence, the stability of those fibers is significantly improved.
* Lecture presented at the 15th International Symposium
on Plasma Chemistry, Orléans, France, 9-13 July 2001. Other presentations
are presented in this issue, pp. 317–492.
** Corresponding author.
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