Effects of Oxygen Plasma Treatment on the Wettability of Polypropylene Fabrics

The objective of this study is to give PP(polypropylene) fabric a good affinity for water. Oxygen plasma was treated to PP fabrics in a commercial glow discharge reactor with different RF power, discharge pressure, and reaction time. The PP fiber surfaces were characterized by the measurement of contact angle and ESCA. A JEOL scanning electron microscope was used to observe the surface morphology of fibers. The spontaneous water uptake amount of PP fabrics was determined by the demand wettability test. To determine the effect of aging on the surface properties of $O_2$ plasma treated PP, all the above measurements of the samples were carried out after 1, 7, 30, 60, and 150 days. The results are as follows. The PP fiber surfaces treated by $O_2$ plasma treatment have a chemical composition that consisted of various oxygen containing polar groups. Consequently, the contact angles of the treated PP fibers decreased, which improved the water uptake rate of PP fabrics. Surface roughness of the treated PP affected the fabric wettabiity as well. Wettability of the treated PP decreased and leveled off with aging. The $O_2$ plasma treatment is a simple and effective method to increase the water uptake rate of PP fabrics.