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Olariu MA, Herrero R, Astanei DG, Jofré L, Morentin J, Filip TA, Burlica R. Improving Printability of Polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) with the Help of Plasma Pre-Treatment. Polymers (Basel) 2023; 15:3348. [PMID: 37631405 PMCID: PMC10458421 DOI: 10.3390/polym15163348] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/14/2023] [Revised: 08/04/2023] [Accepted: 08/07/2023] [Indexed: 08/27/2023] Open
Abstract
Polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) is a potential candidate for the fabrication of flexible electronics devices and electronics with applications in various extreme environments, mainly due to its outstanding chemical and physical properties. However, to date, the utilization of PTFE in printing trials has been limited due to the material's low surface tension and wettability, which do not ensure good adhesion of the printing ink at the level of the substrate. Within this paper, successful printing of PTFE is realized after pre-treating the surface of the substrate with the help of dielectric barrier discharge non-thermal plasma. The efficiency of the pre-treatment is demonstrated with respect to both silver- and carbon-based inks that are commercially available, and finally, the long-lasting pre-treatment effect is demonstrated for periods of time spanning from minutes to days. The experimental results are practically paving the way toward large-scale utilization of PTFE as substrate in fabricating printed electronics in harsh working environments. After 3 s of plasma treatment of the foil, the WCA decreased from approximately 103° to approximately 70°. The resolution of the printed lines of carbon ink was not time dependent and was unmodified, even if the printing was realized within 1 min from the time of applying the pre-treatment or 10 days later. The evaluation of the surface tension (σ) measured with Arcotest Ink Pink showed an increase in σ up to 40 < σ < 42 mN/m for treated Teflon foil and from σ < 30 mN/m corresponding to the untreated substrate. The difference in resolution was distinguishable when increasing the width of the printed lines from 500 μm to 750 μm, but when increasing the width from 750 μm to 1000 μm, the difference was minimal.
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Affiliation(s)
- Marius Andrei Olariu
- Faculty of Electrical Engineering, “Gheorghe Asachi” Technical University of Iasi, 700050 Iasi, Romania; (M.A.O.); (T.A.F.)
| | - Rakel Herrero
- Technological Center of Mobility and Mechatronics (NAITEC), 31200 Estella-Lizarra, Spain; (R.H.); (L.J.); (J.M.)
| | - Dragoș George Astanei
- Faculty of Electrical Engineering, “Gheorghe Asachi” Technical University of Iasi, 700050 Iasi, Romania; (M.A.O.); (T.A.F.)
| | - Lisandro Jofré
- Technological Center of Mobility and Mechatronics (NAITEC), 31200 Estella-Lizarra, Spain; (R.H.); (L.J.); (J.M.)
| | - Javier Morentin
- Technological Center of Mobility and Mechatronics (NAITEC), 31200 Estella-Lizarra, Spain; (R.H.); (L.J.); (J.M.)
| | - Tudor Alexandru Filip
- Faculty of Electrical Engineering, “Gheorghe Asachi” Technical University of Iasi, 700050 Iasi, Romania; (M.A.O.); (T.A.F.)
| | - Radu Burlica
- Faculty of Electrical Engineering, “Gheorghe Asachi” Technical University of Iasi, 700050 Iasi, Romania; (M.A.O.); (T.A.F.)
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Stoica I, Albu RM, Hulubei C, Astanei DG, Burlica R, Mersal GAM, Seaf Elnasr TA, Barzic AI, Elnaggar AY. A New Texturing Approach of a Polyimide Shielding Cover for Enhanced Light Propagation in Photovoltaic Devices. Nanomaterials (Basel) 2022; 12:3249. [PMID: 36145037 PMCID: PMC9505763 DOI: 10.3390/nano12183249] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/26/2022] [Revised: 09/09/2022] [Accepted: 09/13/2022] [Indexed: 06/16/2023]
Abstract
The efficiency of photovoltaics (PVs) is related to cover material properties and light management in upper layers of the device. This article investigates new polyimide (PI) covers for PVs that enable light trapping through their induced surface texture. The latter is attained via a novel strategy that involves multi-directional rubbing followed by plasma exposure. Atomic force microscopy (AFM) is utilized to clarify the outcome of the proposed light-trapping approach. Since a deep clarification of either random or periodic surface morphology is responsible for the desired light capturing in solar cells, the elaborated texturing procedure generates a balance among both discussed aspects. Multidirectional surface abrasion with sand paper on pre-defined directions of the PI films reveals some relevant modifications regarding both surface morphology and the resulted degree of anisotropy. The illuminance experiments are performed to examine if the created surface texture is suitable for proper light propagation through the studied PI covers. The adhesion among the upper layers of the PV, namely the PI and transparent electrode, is evaluated. The correlation between the results of these analyses helps to identify not only adequate polymer shielding materials, but also to understand the chemical structure response to new design routes for light-trapping, which might significantly contribute to an enhanced conversion efficiency of the PV devices.
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Affiliation(s)
- Iuliana Stoica
- Department of Physical Chemistry of Polymers, “Petru Poni” Institute of Macromolecular Chemistry, 700487 Iasi, Romania
| | - Raluca Marinica Albu
- Department of Physical Chemistry of Polymers, “Petru Poni” Institute of Macromolecular Chemistry, 700487 Iasi, Romania
| | - Camelia Hulubei
- Department of Physical Chemistry of Polymers, “Petru Poni” Institute of Macromolecular Chemistry, 700487 Iasi, Romania
| | - Dragos George Astanei
- Faculty of Electrical Engineering, “Gheorghe Asachi” Technical University of Iasi, 700050 Iasi, Romania
| | - Radu Burlica
- Faculty of Electrical Engineering, “Gheorghe Asachi” Technical University of Iasi, 700050 Iasi, Romania
| | - Gaber A. M. Mersal
- Department of Chemistry, College of Science, Taif University, P.O. Box 11099, Taif 21944, Saudi Arabia
| | - Tarek A. Seaf Elnasr
- Department of Chemistry, College of Science, Jouf University, Sakaka P.O. Box 2014, Saudi Arabia
| | - Andreea Irina Barzic
- Department of Physical Chemistry of Polymers, “Petru Poni” Institute of Macromolecular Chemistry, 700487 Iasi, Romania
| | - Ashraf Y. Elnaggar
- Department of Food Science and Nutrition, College of Science, Taif University, P.O. Box 11099, Taif 21944, Saudi Arabia
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Stoleru V, Burlica R, Mihalache G, Dirlau D, Padureanu S, Teliban GC, Astanei D, Cojocaru A, Beniuga O, Patras A. Plant growth promotion effect of plasma activated water on Lactuca sativa L. cultivated in two different volumes of substrate. Sci Rep 2020; 10:20920. [PMID: 33262393 PMCID: PMC7708473 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-020-77355-w] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/03/2020] [Accepted: 11/06/2020] [Indexed: 11/08/2022] Open
Abstract
Plasma activated water (PAW) can represent an alternative to chemical fertilizers in agriculture. The effects of PAW treatment applied in two concentrations (1.5 or 3.0 mg L-1 NO3-) on some morphological, physiological, biochemical parameters and yield of Lactuca sativa L. grown in two different pot volumes (400 or 3200 cm3) were investigated in this study. The results showed that both PAW concentrations did not influence the germination, once the process was initiated. Positive effects of the treatments were registered on the length of radicle and hypocotyls of lettuce at a concentration of 1.5 mg L-1 NO3- (PAW I), the chlorophyll content was significantly increased at a concentration of 3.0 mg L-1 NO3- (PAW II) and bigger pot volume, also the foliar weight and area. No significant differences between the treated and untreated plants were recorded for the root weight, leaf length and width. The dry weight was significantly higher for the lettuce treated with PAW I and II grown in big volume pots at 57 days after transplanting (DAT) and small volume pots at 64 DAT. The nitrites content of the lettuce grown in big pots was lower than of the lettuce grown in small pots, regardless of the PAW treatment. Contrary, the nitrates content was higher in the lettuce grown in big pots (up to 36.4 mg KNO3/g DW), compared to small pots (under 0.3 mg KNO3/g DW).
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Affiliation(s)
- Vasile Stoleru
- "Ion Ionescu de la Brad" University of Agricultural Sciences and Veterinary Medicine, 3 M. Sadoveanu Alley, 700490, Iaşi, Romania
| | - Radu Burlica
- "Gheorghe Asachi" Technical University of Iaşi, 67 Bd. D. Mangeron, 700050, Iaşi, Romania
| | - Gabriela Mihalache
- "Ion Ionescu de la Brad" University of Agricultural Sciences and Veterinary Medicine, 3 M. Sadoveanu Alley, 700490, Iaşi, Romania
- Integrated Center of Environmental Science Studies in the North East Region (CERNESIM), "Alexandru Ioan Cuza" University of Iasi, 11 Carol I, 700506, Iaşi, Romania
| | - Delicia Dirlau
- "Gheorghe Asachi" Technical University of Iaşi, 67 Bd. D. Mangeron, 700050, Iaşi, Romania
| | - Silvica Padureanu
- "Ion Ionescu de la Brad" University of Agricultural Sciences and Veterinary Medicine, 3 M. Sadoveanu Alley, 700490, Iaşi, Romania
| | - Gabriel-Ciprian Teliban
- "Ion Ionescu de la Brad" University of Agricultural Sciences and Veterinary Medicine, 3 M. Sadoveanu Alley, 700490, Iaşi, Romania
| | - Dragos Astanei
- "Gheorghe Asachi" Technical University of Iaşi, 67 Bd. D. Mangeron, 700050, Iaşi, Romania
| | - Alexandru Cojocaru
- "Ion Ionescu de la Brad" University of Agricultural Sciences and Veterinary Medicine, 3 M. Sadoveanu Alley, 700490, Iaşi, Romania
| | - Oana Beniuga
- "Gheorghe Asachi" Technical University of Iaşi, 67 Bd. D. Mangeron, 700050, Iaşi, Romania
| | - Antoanela Patras
- "Ion Ionescu de la Brad" University of Agricultural Sciences and Veterinary Medicine, 3 M. Sadoveanu Alley, 700490, Iaşi, Romania.
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Burlica R, Shih KY, Hnatiuc B, Locke BR. Hydrogen Generation by Pulsed Gliding Arc Discharge Plasma with Sprays of Alcohol Solutions. Ind Eng Chem Res 2011. [DOI: 10.1021/ie101920n] [Citation(s) in RCA: 57] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Radu Burlica
- Technical University “Gh.Asachi” Iasi, Iasi, Romania
| | - Kai-Yuan Shih
- Department of Chemical and Biomedical Engineering, FAMU-FSU College of Engineering, Florida State University, Tallahassee, Florida, United States
| | | | - Bruce R. Locke
- Department of Chemical and Biomedical Engineering, FAMU-FSU College of Engineering, Florida State University, Tallahassee, Florida, United States
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Affiliation(s)
- R. Burlica
- Technical University “Gh.Asachi” Iasi, Iasi, Romania, and Department of Chemical and Biomedical Engineering, FAMU-FSU College of Engineering, Florida State University, Tallahassee, Florida
| | - K.-Y. Shih
- Technical University “Gh.Asachi” Iasi, Iasi, Romania, and Department of Chemical and Biomedical Engineering, FAMU-FSU College of Engineering, Florida State University, Tallahassee, Florida
| | - B. R. Locke
- Technical University “Gh.Asachi” Iasi, Iasi, Romania, and Department of Chemical and Biomedical Engineering, FAMU-FSU College of Engineering, Florida State University, Tallahassee, Florida
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