Study on Surface Properties of Polyamide 66 Using Atmospheric Glow-Like Discharge Plasma Treatment

Surface modification of fiber fabric sometimes needs a large volume of cold plasma to improve its efficiency. This experimental study is based on the treatment of polyamide 66 (PA66) fabrics using large contact-area glow-like plasma, which are produced in the atmospheric air without any dielectric barriers. The atomic force microscopy (AFM) and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) are adopted, respectively, to detect the surface changes in physical microstructure and the variations in the type and quantity of chemical functional groups. The results show that the PA66 fabric surface will be etched remarkably by the glow-like plasma, and the surface roughness and the surface energy are augmented. On the surface of the processed PA66 fabrics, the oxygen-containing functional groups’ content rises together with the decrease on the total primary C–C and C–N bonds. After 30 seconds of sterilization by the glow-like plasmas, most of the bacterial colonies on the fabric vanish. The effectiveness of this kind of plasma treatment could last for three days in a sealed environment.