Ar plasma initiated grafting reaction for hydrophilicity of PET fabrics

Polyester(PET) fabric which had been subjected to the pretreatment with polyethylene glycol was treated by glow discharge plasma in low-pressure argon.The electron temperature and electron density of the plasma were determined by electrostatic probe.The hydrophilicity of treated polyester fabric was measured by moisture management test(MMT).The influence of grafting monomer and argon plasma conditions on the hydrophilicity of treated polyester fabric was analyzed.The reaction mechanism and durability of hydrophilicity of the treated PET were discussed.The results showed that the hydrophilicity of polyester fabrics was improved evidently with argon plasma treatment after dipping 5% polyethylene glycol 1000.The optimum plasma treatment conditions were defined as follows: discharge power 50 W,pressure 30 Pa and plasma exposure time 3 minutes.The wetting time of the treated fabric was 2.9 s,diffusion rate of water was 7.2 mm /s and contact angle was 0° on the surface of polyester fabric.The fabric showed good durability in hydrophilicity after many times of washing.