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UV Excimer laser treatment can be used to produce a modification of surface morphology on polymer. The interaction produces the characteristic ripple/roll like structures and changes in physical and chemical properties. Possible textile application of this non-contacting physical technique on polyester microfibre fabric was systematically studied. Two commercially available high temperature dyes of red and blue were used in this study and results revealed that dyeing rate of both dyes on polyester increased remarkably after laser treatment.

The effects of low-fluence laser on polyethylene terephthalate (PET) fibres are reported in this work. Laser Induced Periodic Surface Structures (LIPSSs) are formed on the fibres by using a 248 nm uv excimer laser with a fluence below the ablation threshold of the material so that no removals are involved in the treatment. The optimum conditions for forming a successful periodic ripple structure on PET fibres are 6 mJcm^-2 of laser fluence and 2000 shots of laser pulses. Other than the fluence and pulse number of the laser, its degree of polarization, the direction of polarization and the curvature of the fibre surface also play important roles in forming the structures. All of these effects are reported in this work, which highlights the distinctive features of the surface profile and its production in comparison with those of LIPSSs on PET fibres due to high-fluence lasers, and of LIPSSs on PET films due to low-fluence lasers.

The surface properties of materials are often the important determinants of their usefulness, and many of the chemical treatments now in use are aimed at modifying these properties. The important properties of polymer materials such as adhesion, friction, wetting, penetrability and biological compatibility are strongly influenced by their surface characteristics. Low Temperature Plasma (LTP) is a technology which can produce not only interesting morphological modification on the surface of the polymers, but also can replace less environmental-friendly finishing processes. In this paper, four non-polymerizing plasma gases: oxygen, argon, tetrafluoromethane and 75%/25% nitrogen/hydrogen mixture were used to modify Nylon 6 filaments and fabrics. The results of SEM study reveals that interesting morphological changes on the surface of treated samples. Besides, with the appropriate LTP treatment, the fabric properties, such as the hydrophobicity of polyamides, surface luster, etc. can be greatly modified.