Effects of oxygen plasma treatment on domestic Aramid fiber III surface properties

The effects of oxygen plasma treatment on Domestic Aramid Fiber III (DAF III) surface properties were investigated in this work.The fiber surface chemical composition, surface morphology, surface roughness and surface wettability before and after oxygen plasma treatment were characterized by X-ray Photoelectron Spectroscopy (XPS), Atomic Force Microscopy (AFM) and Dynamic Contact Angles Analysis (DCAA), respectively.The results showed that oxygen plasma treatment improved the fiber surface chemical activities, changed surface morphologies, enhanced surface roughness and improved surface wettability by oxidative reactions and plasma etching.The total free energy increased from 49.8 mJ/m2 to 62.73 mJ/m2 after oxygen plasma treatment.