Zeta Potential and Surface Physico-chemical Properties of Atmospheric Air-plasma-treated Polyester Fabrics

The effects of atmospheric air-plasma treatments on woven polyester (PET) textile structures were studied by surface analysis methods: zeta potential, X-ray photoemission spectroscopy (XPS), wettability and capillarity methods. The zeta potential of the fabrics was based on the established principles of streaming potential. The zeta potential measurements showed that plasma-treated fabrics indicated an acidic surface character. The water contact angle on plasma-treated PET decreased from 80 to 40, indicating an increase in the surface energy of PET fibers due to a change in the fiber surface chemical nature, which was confirmed by an increase of the oxygen content in the surface detected by XPS. The capillary weight increased from 12 to 200 mg. Both capillary and zeta measurements showed 700 W as the optimum plasma treatment power.