The Effect of DBD Plasma Activation Time on the Dyeability of Woven Polyester Fabric with Disperse Dye

This study consists of two parts. In the first, the woven polyester fabric, after washing to remove lubricant oils, was treated with the dielectric barrier discharge (DBD) plasma at the short plasma exposure time (from 15 to 90 s). The effect of the plasma exposure time on the activation of the polyester fabric was assessed by the wicking height of the samples. The results show that the wicking height in the warp direction of the plasma-treated samples improved but was virtually unchanged in the weft direction. Meanwhile, although the tensile strength in the warp direction of the fabric was virtually unaffected despite the plasma treatment time up to 90 s, in the weft direction it increased slightly with the plasma treatment time. Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM) images and the X-ray Photoelectron Spectroscopy (XPS) spectra of the samples before and after the plasma treatment were used to explain the nature of these phenomena. Based on the results of the first part, in the second part, two levels of the plasma treatment time (30 and 60 s) were selected to study their effect on the polyester fabric dyeability with disperse dyes. The color strength (K/S) values of the dyed samples were used to evaluate the dyeability of the fabric. The SEM images of the dyed samples also showed the difference in the dyeability between the plasma-treated and untreated samples. A new feature of this study is the DBD plasma treatment condition for polyester fabrics. The first is the use of DBD plasma in air (no addition of gas). Second is the very short plasma treatment time (only 15 to 90 s); this condition will be very favorable for the deployment on an industrial scale.