OILS ON THE FIBER

During fiber production size (mineral oils) were applied to prevent electrical charging and reduce friction. These sizes have negative consequences for further processing steps, such as low adhesion.
Low pressure plasma techniques especially radio frequency (RF)-generated plasmas, are a very good method to perform a complete cleaning and remove the size from the fiber.
The advantages of this method are low consumption of resources, ecologically sound, and scaleable to mass production.

CLEANING OF THE FIBER

The fiber is directed several times around the RF antenna where the plasma is generated. The fibers were wound -up and -off in ambient atmosphere.

RESULTS

The cleaning effect mainly depends on:

• Process pressure
• Process gases

The cleaning step before coating significantly enhances the adhesion of the coated layer.

Contact

Dr Dirk Hegemann 
+41 (0)71 274 72 68
dirk.hegemann@empa.ch