Plasma Treatment

What is a Plasma Surface Treatment?

Plasma treatment, also known as plasma cleaning, plasma etching, plasma surface modification or activation, involves striking the surface with high energy electrons and ions. Plasma treatment is a method to clean, activate, etch and coat surfaces. It is more environmentally friendly and cost-effective compared to alternative methods since no waste disposal of harmful chemicals is necessary. This makes this method ideal for a variety of applications like plasma cleaning aerospace or automotive components.  That modifies physical and chemical structure of the very top layer and changes surface wettability and functionalization. 

It's useful to start by defining what a plasma is. Solid, liquid and gas are the three states of matter we are all familiar with. We can move between the states by adding or removing energy (e.g. heating/cooling). If we continue to add enough energy, gas molecules will become ionised (lose one or more electrons) and so carry a net positive charge. If enough molecules are ionised to affect the overall electrical characteristics of the gas the result is called a plasma. Plasmas are, therefore, quite rightly, often referred to as the fourth state of matter.

A plasma contains positive ions, electrons, neutral gas atoms or molecules, UV light and also excited gas atoms and molecules, which can carry a large amount of internal energy (plasmas glow because light is emitted as these excited neutral particles relax to a lower energy state). All of these components can interact with the surface during plasma treatment. By choosing the gas mixture, power, pressure etc. we can quite precisely tune, or specify, the effects of the plasma treatment.

Plasma surface treatment systems are widely used to facilitate bonding of adhesives, paints, inks, coatings, epoxies, resins, potting compounds, and other materials. Plasma surface treatments use plasma to alter the surface of a material in order to improve surface energy for bonding and printing. Plasma treatments also increase wettability of most any substrate. 

Plasma treatment equipment becomes indispensable tool for processing various plastics including PTFE, ETFE, PVC, PP, PE, PET, and other low surface energy solids. All surfaces are contaminated with organics even though the contaminates are usually invisible to the casual observer. These contaminants impact an object’s ability to interact with other materials such as glue or ink. By treating an object's surface with a plasma, we are able to remove organic contaminants.

How the plasma treatment process works

Plasma treatment can be performed in an evacuated enclosure or chamber. The air is pumped out and gas is allowed to flow in at low pressure before the energy in the form of electrical power is applied. It’s important to note that the plasma treatment is actually a low-temperature process, meaning that heat-sensitive materials can be processed quite readily.

Industries:

• Aerospace

• Automotive

• Contact lenses & optics

• Filter media

• Medical

• Microscopy

• PCB/Electronics assembly

• O-rings

• Plastic/Loyalty cards

• Print

• R & D Academic

• Textiles & Fabrics

Naen Technology systems increase the bond strength of a glue or solder and provides increased reliability for printing. These treatments work well on shiny plastics and rubbers, allowing printing and bonding.

We work closely with our customers finding a right plasma solution. Give us a call to discuss what’s best for your application.