Plasma
Plasma is a state of matter characterized by high electrical conductivity and ionized particles. It is formed when energy is added to gases to remove electrons from the atoms. This leads to a state where the atoms become a mixture of positively charged ions and negatively charged electrons.
Plasma is often found in hot, energetic environments like the Sun and other stars. But it also occurs on Earth in various technical applications. For example, plasmas are used in material processing to cut or weld materials such as metals.
In adhesive technology, plasma is used to activate an adhesive surface (component surface).
In the case of plastics with a non-polar surface, plasma pretreatment helps to activate the surface. The same applies to glass and ceramics.
Traditionally, this surface treatment is done with chemical primers or liquid adhesion promoters. They are highly corrosive and harmful to the environment. On the one hand, they have to flash off sufficiently before further processing and, on the other hand, they are often not active for long. Plasma, on the other hand, is harmless to health.
When activated with plasma, "non-sticky" plastics such as POM, PE and PP can also be glued or painted very well.
The main advantages of plasma activation are:
- Finest cleaning, no residue
- gentle, non-destructive surface treatment
- no wet chemistry
- Compressed air or inexpensive, non-toxic working gas
- environmentally friendly
- no expensive vacuum systems
- high processing speeds
- easy integration into existing production lines.
