Surface Characterisation of Atmospheric Pressure Plasma Treated Cotton Fabric—Effect of Operation Parameters

The surface of cotton fibre was modified by atmospheric pressure plasma treatment (APPT), using gas as the carrier. Effects of variations in four operational parameters, discharge power, oxygen flow rate, jet-to-substrate distance and speed of the jet movement were examined. Morphology of surface of cotton fabrics was examined by generating Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) images. Elementary composition of the surface of the fabric was examined by X-ray Photoelectron Spectroscopy (XPS) and Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy-Attenuated. Total Internal Reflectance (FTIR-ATR) was used for examining functionality of the surface. In this study, we revealed that the operational parameters would physical and chemically after the surface characteristics of the cotton fibre. Physically, cracks and grooves were noted in the cotton fibre surface after APPT. Chemically, the oxygen content in the cotton fibre surface was increased after APPT. When the O/C ratio is taken into consideration, the surface oxidation was a steady effect in applying APPT for treating cotton fibre in this study.