Surface modification of polytetrafluoroethylene film using single liquid electrode atmospheric-pressure glow discharge

Polytetrafluoroethylene films are treated by room temperature helium atmospheric pressure plasma plumes, which are generated with a home-made single liquid electrode plasma device. After plasma treatment, the water contact angle of polytetrafiuoroethylene fihn drops from 114° to 46° and the surface free energy increases from 22.0 mJ/m2 to 59.1 mJ/m2. The optical emission spectrum indicates that there are reactive species such as O2＋, O and He in the plasma plume. After plasma treatment, a highly crosslinking structure is formed on the fihn surface and the oxygen element is incorporated into the film surface in the forms of C O-C-, -C=O, and O C=O groups. Over a period of 10 days, the contact angle of the treated film is recovered by only about 10°, which indicates that the plasma surface modification is stable with time.

Analyses of nonequilibrium transport in atmospheric-pressure direct-current argon discharge under different modes

The key plasma parameters under different discharge modes, such as heavy-particle and electron temperatures, electron number density, and nonequilibrium volume of plasmas, play important roles in various applications of gas discharge plasmas. In this study, a self-consistent two-dimensional nonequilibrium fluid model coupled with an external circuit model is established to reveal the mechanisms related to the discharge modes, including the normal glow, abnormal glow,arc, and glow-to-arc transition modes, with an atmospheric-pressure direct-current(DC) argon discharge as a model plasma system. The modeling results show that, under different discharge modes, the most significant difference between the preceding four discharge modes lies in the current and energy transfer processes on the cathode side. On one hand, the current to the cathode surface is mainly delivered by the ions coming from the plasma column under the glow discharge mode due to the low temperature of the solid cathode, whereas the thermionic and secondary electrons emitted from the hot cathode surface play a very important role under the arc mode with a higher cathode surface temperature and higher ion flux toward the cathode. On the other hand, the energy transfer channel on the cathode side changes from mainly heating the solid cathode under the glow mode to simultaneously heating both the solid cathode and plasma column under the arc mode with an increase in the discharge current. Consequently, the power density in the cathode sheath(P_c) was used as a key parameter for judging different discharge modes, and the range of(0.28–1.2) × 10^(12) W m^(-3) was determined as a critical window of P_c corresponding to the glow-to-arc-mode transition for the atmospheric-pressure DC argon discharge, which was also verified by comparison with the experimental results in this study and the data in the previous literature.

Study of generation characteristics of glow-type atmospheric-pressure plasma jet based on DC discharge in air

In order to form an atmospheric-pressure plasma jet without airflow, a needle–ring electrode structure is proposed in this paper. When heteropolar potentials are applied to a needle and a ring, a marked electric field strength enhancement around the needle’s pointed end has been found. When the same potential is applied to both the needle and the ring, the lateral electric field strength for the needle can be weakened. By using the above two methods, an increase of the difference between the pointed end electric field strength and the lateral one is achieved and stable plasma jets are formed. A symmetrical space electric field distribution is established at the pointed end of the needles when several sets of heteropolar needle–ring electrodes are uniformly arranged, which is conducive to forming a uniform array plasma jet. Under DC discharge conditions, a safe and stable plasma jet of high density and an array plasma jet are successfully achieved.

Sub-microsecond Pulsed Atmospheric-pressure Glow Discharge with Bare Metal Electrodes

In order to better understand the physical mechanism of sub-microsecond pulsed glow discharge with bare metal electrodes,using a one-dimensional self-consistent fluid model,the properties of the discharge at atmospheric pressure are numerically studied.The results show that,a discharge without dielectric layers,i.e.a barrier free discharge,is extinguished only with the decrease of the applied voltage.Only one positive discharge event occurs at the slope of the pulsed voltage.A stable glow of barrier free discharge can be achieved only in short durations of the pulsed voltage.The barrier free discharge always starts with a subnormal glow discharge and then evolves into a normal glow discharge.Moreover,to control the discharge stabilization better,the effects of pulse repetition frequency,pulse duration,rising(front) and falling(slope) times on the discharge characteristics are investigated systematically.It is found that the discharge is comparatively more sensitive to the repetition frequency and the pulse duration,while little affected by the rising and falling times.

Simulation of DC glow discharge plasma with free-moving dust particles in the radial direction

A self-consistent fluid model is developed to investigate the radial distributions of dusty plasma parameters in a DC glow discharge,in which the extended fluid approach of plasma particles and the transport equations of dust particles are coupled.The electrical interaction between charged dust particles is considered in the model.The time evolution of radial distributions of dust density,plasma density,the radial component of electric field and the forces acting on dust particles when dust density tends to be stable,are obtained and analyzed under different discharge currents and dust particle radii.It is shown that the dust density structure is determined mainly by the radial electrostatic force,thermophoretic force and ion drag force in the discharge tube,and both discharge current and dust particle radius have an obvious effect on the transport processes of dust particles.The dust particles gather in the central region of the discharge tube for low discharge current and small dust radius,then dust voids are formed and become wider when the discharge current and dust radius increase.The plasma parameters in the dust gathering region are obviously affected by the dust particles due to the charging processes of electrons and ions to the dust surface.

Two-Dimensional Simulation of Spatial-Temporal Behaviors About Period Doubling Bifurcation in an Atmospheric-Pressure Dielectric Barrier Discharge

As a spatially extended dissipated system, atmospheric-pressure dielectric barrier discharges （DBDs） could in principle possess complex nonlinear behaviors. In order to improve the stability and uniformity of atmospheric-pressure dielectric barrier discharges, studies on tem- poral behaviors and radial structure of discharges with strong nonlinear behaviors under different controlling parameters are much desirable. In this paper, a two-dimensional fluid model is devel- oped to simulate the radial discharge structure of period-doubling bifurcation, chaos, and inverse period-doubling bifurcation in an atmospheric-pressure DBD. The results show that the period-2n （n = 1, 2... ） and chaotic discharges exhibit nonuniform discharge structure. In period-2n or chaos, not only the shape of current pulses doesn＇t remains exactly the same from one cycle to an- other, but also the radial structures, such as discharge spatial evolution process and the strongest breakdown region, are different in each neighboring discharge event. Current-voltage characteris- tics of the discharge system are studied for further understanding of the radial structure.

Low-current Atmospheric-pressure Discharges in Gas Flow and Their Applications

The paper reviews the results of investigations of the low-current atmospheric-pressure discharges in gas flow.The attention is focused on the discharges in electrode systems of coaxial plasmatron and of so-called gliding arc.It is demonstrated that a considerable fraction of discharge current is carried by a plasma column operating in a regime of normal glow discharge with occasional transitions to spark.The nature of glow-to-spark transition is discussed.Beside the plasma column,a weakly ionized gas fills in the interelectrode gap and forms a plasma jet at the exit of electrode system.The jet contains the active chemical particles that play important role in different discharge applications.The applications in plasma assisted combustion systems,for surface treatment with a usage of plasma jet,and for biology and medicine are considered.

TREATMENT OF METALS, POLYMER FILMS, AND FABRICS WITHA ONE ATMOSPHERE UNIFORM GLOW DISCHARGE PLASMA(OAUGDP) FOR INCREASED SURFACE ENERGY AND DIRECTIONAL ETCHING

Direct exposure of samples to the active species of air generated by a One Atmosphere Uniform Glow Discharge Plasma (OAUGDP) has been used to etch and to increase the surface energy of metallic surfaces, photoresist, polymer films, and nonwoven fab- rics. The OAUGDP is a non-thermal plasma with the classical characteristics of a DC normal glow discharge that operates in air (and other gases) at atmospheric pres- sure. Neither a vacuum system nor batch processing is necessary. A wide range of applications to metals, photoresist, films, fabrics, and polymeric webs can be accom- modated by direct exposure of the workpiece to the plasma in parallel-plate reactors. This technolopy is simple, it produces effects that can be obtained in no other way at one atmosphere; it generates minimal pollutants or unwanted by-products; and it is suitable for individual sample or online treatment of metallic surfaces, wafers, films, and fabrics. Early exposures of solid materials to the OAUGDP required minutes to produce rela- tively small increases of surface energy. These durations appeared too long for com- mercial application to fast-moving webs. Recent improvements in OAUGDP gas com- position, power density, plasma quality, recireulating gas flow, and impedance match- ing of the power supply to the parallel plate plasma reactor have made it possible to raise the surface energy of a variety of polymeric webs (PP, PET PE etc.) to levels of 60 to 70 dynes/cm with one second of exposure. In air plasmas, the high surface ener- gies are not durable, and fall to 50 dynes/cm after periods of weeks to months. Here, we report the exposure of metallic surfaces, photoresist, polymeric films, and nonwo- ven fabrics made of PP and PET to an impedance matched parallel plate OAUGDP for durations ranging from one second to several tens of seconds. Data will be re- ported on the surface energy, wettability, wickability, and aging effect of polymeric films and fabrics as functions of time of exposure, and time after exposure; the rate and uniformity of photoresist etching; and the production of sub-micron structures by OAUGDP etching at one atmosphere.

Surface Treatment of Polyethylene Terephthalate Film Using Atmospheric Pressure Glow Discharge in Air

Non-thermal plasmas under atmospheric pressure are of great interest in polymer surface processing because of their convenience, effectiveness and low cost. In this paper, the treatment of Polyethylene terephthalate (PET) film surface for improving hydrophilicity using the non-thermal plasma generated by atmospheric pressure glow discharge (APGD) in air is conducted. The discharge characteristics of APGD are shown by measurement of their electrical discharge parameters and observation of light-emission phenomena, and the surface properties of PET before and after the APGD treatment are studied using contact angle measurement, x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). It is found that the APGD is homogeneous and stable in the whole gas gap, which differs from the commonly filamentary dielectric barrier discharge (DBD). A short time (several seconds) APGD treatment can modify the surface characteristics of PET film markedly and uniformly. After 10 s APGD treatment, the

Oxidative Degradation of 4-chlorophenol in Aqueous Induced by Plasma with Submersed Glow Discharge Electrolysis

The oxidative degradation of 4-chlorophenol （4-CP） in aqueous solution induced by plasma with submersed glow discharge has been investigated. The concentration of 4-CP and the reaction intermediates were determined by high performance liquid chromatography （HPLC）. Various influencing factors such as the initial pH, the concentration of 4-CP and the catalytic action of Fe^2＋ were examined. The results indicate that 4-CP is eventually degraded into inorganic ion, dioxide carbon and water. The attack of hydroxyl radicals on the benzene rings of 4-CP in the initial stage of oxidative reactions is presumed to be a key step. They also suggest that the reaction is of a pseudo-first order kinetic reaction and the proposed method is an efficient way for the 4-CP degradation,

Application of the Multi-Electrode in the Degradation of Alizarin Red Induced by Glow Discharge Plasma

This paper presents a novel set-up to be used in the degradation of dye, Various influencing factors, such as the voltage, the number of the anodes, and the catalytic action of Fe^2＋, were examined. Chemical oxygen demand （COD）, ultraviolet （UV）, FTIR absorption spectra, and atomic force microscopy （AFM） were used to monitor the degradation process. The results showed that the efficiency of degradation is raised by increasing the applied voltage, and is further improved when two or three anodes are used. Moreover, the use of Fe^2＋ ion can promote the degradation reaction and shorten the degradation time. So the multi-electrode instrument is more efficient in degrading the dye and should be further studied.

Numerical studies of atmospheric pressure glow discharge controlled by a dielectric barrier between two coaxial electrodes

The glow discharge in pure helium at atmospheric pressure, controlled by a dielectric barrier between coaxial electrodes, is investigated based on a one-dimensional self-consistent fluid model. By solving the continuity equations for electrons, ions, and excited atoms, with the current conservation equation and the electric field profile, the time evolution of the discharge current, gas voltage and the surface density of charged particles on the dielectric barrier are calculated. The simulation results show that the peak values of the discharge current, gas voltage and electric field in the first half period are asymmetric to the second half. When the current reaches its positive or negative maximum, the electric field profile, and the electron and ion densities represent similar properties to the typical glow discharge at low pressures. Obviously there exist a cathode fall, a negative glow region, and a positive column. Effects of the barrier position in between the two coaxial electrodes and the discharge gap width on discharge current characteristics are also analysed. The result indicates that, in the case when the dielectric covering the outer electrode only, the gas is punctured earlier during the former half period and later during the latter half period than other cases, also the current peak value is higher, and the difference of pulse width between the two half periods is more obvious. On reducing the gap width, the multiple current pulse discharge happens.

Spatial distribution of electron characteristic in argon rf glow discharges

The spatial distributions of the electron density and the mean electron energy of argon radio frequency （rf） glow discharge plasma in a plasma-enhanced chemical vapour deposition （PECVD） system have been investigated using an established movable Langmuir probe. The results indicate that in the axial direction the electron density tends to peak at midway between the two electrodes while the axial variation trend of mean electron energy is different from that of the electron density, the mean electron energy is high near the electrodes. And the mean electron energy near the cathode is much higher than that near the anode. This article focuses on the radial distribution of electron density and mean electron energy. A proposed theoretical model distribution agrees well with the experimental one： the electron density and the mean electron energy both increase from the centre of the glow to the edge of electrodes. This is useful for better understanding the discharge mechanism and searching for a better deposition condition to improve thin film quality.

Low Pressure DC Glow Discharge Air Plasma Surface Treatment of Polyethylene (PE) Film for Improvement of Adhesive Properties

The present work deals with the change in surface properties of polyethylene （PE） film using DC low pressure glow discharge air plasma and makes it useful for technical applications. The change in hydrophilicity of the modified PE film surface was investigated by measuring contact angle and surface energy as a function of exposure time. Changes in the morphological and chemical composition of PE films were analyzed by atomic force microscopy （AFM） and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy （XPS）. The improvement in adhesion was studied by measuring T-peel and lap-shear strength. The results show that the wettability and surface energy of the PE film has been improved due to the introduction of oxygen-containing polar groups and an increase in surface roughness. The XPS result clearly shows the increase in concentration of oxygen content and the formation of polar groups on the polymer surface. The AFM observation on PE film shows that the roughness of the surface increased due to plasma treatment. The above morphological and chemical changes enhanced the adhesive properties of the PE＇film surfaces, which was confirmed by T-peel and lap-shear tests.

Numerical study of the self-pulsing of DC discharge:from corona to parallel-plate configurations

We present here an investigation of the self-pulsing phenomenon of negative corona and parallel-plate discharge in argon within one frame of a one-dimensional fluid model in cylinder–cylinder electrode geometry.The transition from corona to parallel-plate discharge is obtained by changing the inner and outer radii of the electrodes.The model reproduces the self-pulsing waveform well and provides the spatiotemporal behaviors of the charged particles and electric field during the pulse.The self-pulsing shows a common feature that occurs in various configurations and that does not depend on a specific electrode structure.The self-pulsing is the transformation between a weak-current Townsend mode and a large-current normal glow mode.The behavior of the positive ions is the dominant factor in the formation of the pulse.

Characteristics of a Normal Glow Discharge Excited by DC Voltage in Atmospheric Pressure Air

Atmospheric pressure glow discharges were generated in an air gap between a needle cathode and a water anode. Through changing the ballast resistor and gas gap width between the electrodes, it has been found that the discharges are in normal glow regime judged from the currentvoltage characteristics and visualization of the discharges. Results indicate that the diameter of the positive column increases with increasing discharge current or increasing gap width. Optical emission spectroscopy is used to calculate the electron temperature and vibrational temperature. Both the electron temperature and the vibrational temperature increases with increasing discharge current or increasing gap width. Spatially resolved measurements show that the maxima of electron temperature and vibrational temperature appeared in the vicinity of the needle cathode.

Degradation of Anionic Dye Eosin by Glow Discharge Electrolysis Plasma

This paper describes a novel method for the degradation of eosin by using glow discharge electrolysis （GDE）. The effects of various parameters on the removal efficiency were studied. It was found that the eosin degradation could be raised considerably by increasing the applied voltage and the initial concentration, or by decreasing pH of the aqueous solution. Fe^2＋ ion had an evident accelerating effect on the eosin degradation. The degradation process of eosin obeyed a pseudo-first-order reaction. The relationship between the degradation rate constant k and the reaction temperature T could be expressed by Arrhenius equation with which the apparent activation energy Ea of 14.110 kJ· mol^-1 and the pre-exponential factor k0 of 2.065× 10^-1 min^-1 were obtained, too. The determination of hydroxyl radical was carried out by using N, N-dimethyl -p-nitrosoaniline （RNO） as a scavenger. The results showed that the hydroxyl radical plays an important role in the degradation process.

Temporal evolution of atmospheric cascade glow discharge with pulsed discharge and radio frequency discharge

Atmospheric cascade discharges with pulsed discharge and radio frequency(RF)discharge were experimentally investigated by the temporal evolution of discharge spatial profile and intensity.The indium tin oxide(ITO)coated glass was employed as the transparent electrode to capture the discharge distribution above the electrode surface.It is demonstrated that in the pulsed discharge with dielectric barrier,the first discharge at the rising edge of pulse voltage is uniformly ignited and then forms an expanding plasma ring on the ITO electrode surface,which shrinks to the same diameter as that of bare stainless steel electrode with the generation of second discharge at the falling edge of pulse voltage.The discharge profiles along the electrode surface and discharge gap of the successive RF discharge are dependent on the intensity and spatial distribution of residual plasma species generated by the pulsed discharge,which is determined by the time interval between the pulsed discharge and RF discharge.It is demonstrated that the residual plasma species before the RF discharge ignition help to achieve the stable operation of RF discharge with elevated intensity.

Glow Discharge Induced Hydroxyl Radical Degradation of 2-Naphthylamine

In an aqueous solution, normal electrolysis at high voltages switches over spontaneously to glow discharge electrolysis and gives rise to hydroxyl radical, hydrogen peroxide, and aqueous electron, as well as several other active species. Hydroxyl radical directly attacks organic contaminants to make them oxidized. In the present paper, 2-naphthylamine is eventually degraded into hydrogen carbonate and carbon dioxide. The degradation process is analyzed by using an Ultraviolet (UV) absorption spectrum, high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) and chemical oxygen demand (COD). It is demonstrated that 2-naphthylamine (co =30 mg·1-1) is completely converted within 2h at 30℃ and 600 V by glow discharge electrolysis, and the degradation is strongly dependent upon the presence of ferrous ions. COD is ascended in the absence of ferrous ions and descended in the presence of them.

Simulation Study on the Self-Sustained Oscillations in DC Driven Glow Discharges at Atmospheric Pressure Under Different Gas Gaps

In this paper, a one-dimensional plasma fluid model is employed to study the self- sustained oscillations in DC-driven helium glow discharges at atmospheric pressure under different gas gaps. Our simulation results indicate that a harmonic current oscillation with tiny amplitude always occur at the onset of instability and transits into a relaxation one as the conductivity of the semiconductor is decreased. It is found that the dynamics of the oscillations are dependent on the gas gaps. The discharge can only exhibit a simple oscillation with unique amplitude and frequency at smaller gas gaps （〈2 mm） while it can exhibit a more complex oscillation with several different amplitudes and frequencies at larger gas gaps （〉2 mm）. The discharge modes in these current oscillations have also been analyzed.