Yukihiro Kusano

Atmospheric Pressure Plasma Processing for Polymer Adhesion: A Review

Atmospheric pressure plasma processing has attracted significant interests over decades due to its usefulness and a variety of applications. Adhesion improvement of polymer surfaces is among the most important applications of atmospheric pressure plasma treatment. Reflecting recent significant development of the atmospheric pressure plasma processing, this work presents its fundamental aspects, applications, and characterization techniques relevant to adhesion.

Optical diagnostics of a gliding arc

Dynamic processes in a gliding arc plasma generated between two diverging electrodes in ambient air driven by 31.25 kHz AC voltage were investigated using spatially and temporally resolved optical techniques. The life cycles of the gliding arc were tracked in fast movies using a high-speed camera with framing rates of tens to hundreds of kHz, showing details of ignition, motion, pulsation, short-cutting, and extinction of the plasma column. The ignition of a new discharge occurs before the extinction of the previous discharge. The developed, moving plasma column often short-cuts its current path triggered by Townsend breakdown between the two legs of the gliding arc. The emission from the plasma column is shown to pulsate at a frequency of 62.5 kHz, i.e., twice the frequency of the AC power supply. Optical emission spectra of the plasma radiation show the presence of excited N2, NO and OH radicals generated in the plasma and the dependence of their relative intensities on both the distance relative to the electrodes and the phase of the driving AC power. Planar laser-induced fluorescence of the ground-state OH radicals shows high intensity outside the plasma column rather than in the center suggesting that ground-state OH is not formed in the plasma column but in its vicinity.

Dynamics, OH distributions and UV emission of a gliding arc at various flow-rates investigated by optical measurements

We demonstrate a plasma discharge which is generated between two diverging electrodes and extended into a gliding arc in non-equilibrium condition by an air flow at atmospheric pressure. Effects of the air flow rates on the dynamics, ground-state OH distributions and spectral characterization of UV emission of the gliding arc were investigated by optical methods. High-speed photography was utilized to reveal flow-rate dependent dynamics such as ignitions, propagation, short-cutting events, extinctions and conversions of the discharge from glowtype to spark-type. Short-cutting events and ignitions occur more frequently at higher flow rates. The anchor points of the gliding arc are mostly steady at the top of the electrodes at lower flow rates whereas at higher flow rates they glide up along the electrodes most of the time. The afterglow of fully developed gliding arcs is observed to decay over hundreds of microseconds after being electronically short-cut by a newly ignited arc. The extinction time decreases with the increase of the flow rate. The frequency of the conversion of a discharge from glow-type to spark-type increases with the flow rate. Additionally, spatial distributions of ground-state OH were investigated using planar laser-induced fluorescence. The results show that the shape, height, intensity and thickness of ground-state OH distribution vary significantly with air flow rates. Finally, UV emission of the gliding arc is measured using optical emission spectroscopy and it is found that the emission intensity of NO gamma (A-X), OH (A-X) and N-2 (C-B) increase with the flow rates showing more characteristics of spark-type arcs. The observed phenomena indicate the significance of the interaction between local turbulence and the gliding arc.

Water-cooled non-thermal gliding arc for adhesion improvement of glass-fibre-reinforced polyester

A non-equilibrium quenched plasma is prepared using a gliding-arc discharge generated between diverging electrodes and extended by a gas flow. It can be operated at atmospheric pressure and applied to plasma surface treatment to improve adhesion properties of material surfaces. In this work, glass-fibre-reinforced polyester plates were treated using an atmospheric pressure gliding-arc discharge with air flow to improve adhesion with a vinylester adhesive. The electrodes were water-cooled so as to operate the gliding arc continually. The treatment improved wettability and increased the density of oxygen-containing polar functional groups on the surfaces. Double cantilever beam specimens were prepared for fracture mechanic characterization of the laminate adhesive interface. It was found that gliding-arc treatment significantly increases the fracture resistance in comparison with a standard peel-ply treatment.

Atmospheric pressure plasma surface modification of carbon fibres

Carbon fibres are continuously treated with dielectric barrier discharge plasma at atmospheric pressure in various gas conditions for adhesion improvement in mind. An x-ray photoelectron spectroscopic analysis indicated that oxygen is effectively introduced onto the carbon fibre surfaces by He, He/O2 and Ar plasma treatments, mainly attributed to an increase in the density of the C-O single bond at the carbon fibre surfaces. The O/C ratio increased to 0.182 after 1-s He plasma treatment, and remained approximately constant after longer treatment. After exposure in an ambient air at room temperature for a month the O/C ratio at the plasma treated surfaces decreased to 0.151, which is close to that of the untreated ones. It can be attributed to the adsorption of hydrocarbon contamination at the plasma treated surfaces.

Plasma Surface Modification of Glass-Fibre-Reinforced Polyester Enhanced by Ultrasonic Irradiation

During atmospheric pressure plasma treatment, reactive species generated in the plasma diffuse through a boundary gas layer which is adsorbed at the material surface. Many of the reactive species become inactivated before reaching the surface due to their short lifetime. The efficiency of plasma treatment can be highly enhanced by simultaneous high-power ultrasonic irradiation of the treating surface, because the delivered acoustic energy can reduce the thickness of the boundary gas layer. Here surfaces of glass-fibre-reinforced polyester (GFRP) plates were treated using an atmospheric pressure dielectric barrier discharge in helium with ultrasonic irradiation, particularly for the adhesion improvement. The ultrasound was irradiated through a powered mesh electrode using a high-power gas-jet ultrasonic generator. The discharge mode changed from glow to filamentary by the ultrasonic irradiation. The surface characterizations were performed using contact angle measurements, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) and atomic force mictroscopy (AFM). O/C ratios at the GFRP surfaces before the treatments, after 30-s plasma treatment, and after 30-s plasma treatment with ultrasonic irradiation were 0.295, 0.385 and 0.447, respectively. This indicated that the plasma treatment oxidized and roughened the GFRP surface, and the ultrasonic irradiation further enhanced the oxidation. It is concluded that plasma treatment efficiency for adhesion improvement of GFRPs is enhanced by the ultrasonic irradiation.

Plasma surface modification at atmospheric pressure

A plasma is an ionized gas. Ions, electrons, high-energy neutrals, radicals and ultra violet photons are generated in a plasma and these high-energy species can be used for modification of material surfaces. Surface modifications with non-thermal plasmas are attractive because of environmental compatibility, high treatment efficiency due to the non-equilibrium state at high electron temperature, and retained bulk properties of materials. They are often employed at low gas pressures, but require expensive vacuum systems, and are well-developed only for batch or semibatch treatments. To overcome these drawbacks, plasma processing at atmospheric pressure has been developed, obviating vacuum equipment and permitting the treatment of large objects and continuous treatment. For example, a corona discharge and a dielectric barrier discharge (DBD) at atmospheric pressure have long been used for treatment of film surfaces. As they are temporally and spatially inhomogeneous at low electron temperatures, they were often thought to be unsuitable for efficient surface treatments or thin film synthesis. Therefore low pressure plasmas have commonly been used in such cases despite their drawbacks. However, Okazaki, Kogoma and their group in Sophia University reported at the 8th International Symposium on Plasma Chemistry (ISPC-8) in 1987 that even at atmospheric pressure a defusing glow discharge plasma, which is similar to a discharge obtainable at low pressures, can be generated by pulse excitation in a DBD of a noble gas such as helium. It has subsequently been shown that a variety of surface treatments performed in low pressure plasmas are achievable at atmospheric pressure. This technique has already been commercially applied. Some examples include surface treatment of plastic films for adhesion improvement, surface cleaning, and treatment of powders.

Measurements of 3D slip velocities and plasma column lengths of a gliding arc discharge

A non-thermal gliding arc discharge was generated at atmospheric pressure in an air flow. The dynamics of the plasma column and tracer particles were recorded using two synchronized high-speed cameras. Whereas the data analysis for such systems has previously been performed in 2D (analyzing the single camera image), we provide here a 3D data analysis that includes 3D reconstructions of the plasma column and 3D particle tracking velocimetry based on discrete tomography methods. The 3D analysis, in particular, the determination of the 3D slip velocity between the plasma column and the gas flow, gives more realistic insight into the convection cooling process. Additionally, with the determination of the 3D slip velocity and the 3D length of the plasma column, we give more accurate estimates for the drag force, the electric field strength, the power per unit length, and the radius of the conducting zone of the plasma column.

Sustained diffusive alternating current gliding arc discharge in atmospheric pressure air

Rapid transition from glow discharge to thermal arc has been a common problem in generating stable high-power non-thermal plasmas especially at ambient conditions. A sustained diffusive gliding arc discharge was generated in a large volume in atmospheric pressure air, driven by an alternating current (AC) power source. The plasma column extended beyond the water-cooled stainless steel electrodes and was stabilized by matching the flow speed of the turbulent air jet with the rated output power. Comprehensive investigations were performed using high-speed movies measured over the plasma column, synchronized with simultaneously recorded current and voltage waveforms. Dynamic details of the novel non-equilibrium discharge are revealed, which is characterized by a sinusoidal current waveform with amplitude stabilized at around 200 mA intermediate between thermal arc and glow discharge, shedding light to the governing mechanism of the sustained spark-suppressed AC gliding arc discharge.

Ultrasound enhanced plasma surface modification at atmospheric pressure

Abstract Efficiency of atmospheric pressure plasma treatment can be highly enhanced by simultaneous high power ultrasonic irradiation onto the treating surface. It is because ultrasonic waves with a sound pressure level (SPL) above ∼140 dB can reduce the thickness of a boundary gas layer between the plasma and the material surface, and thus, many reactive species generated in the plasma can reach the surface before they are inactivated and can be efficiently utilised for surface modification. In the present work, glass fibre reinforced polyester plates were treated using a dielectric barrier discharge and a gliding arc at atmospheric pressure to study adhesion improvement. The effect of ultrasonic irradiation with the frequency diapason between 20 and 40 kHz at the SPL of ∼150 dB was investigated. After the plasma treatment without ultrasonic irradiation, the wettability was significantly improved. The ultrasonic irradiation during the plasma treatment consistently enhanced the treatment efficiency. The principal effect of ultrasonic irradiation can be attributed to enhancing surface oxidation during plasma treatment. In addition, ultrasonic irradiation can suppress arcing, and the uniformity of the treatment can be improved.