Plasma-Aided Cotton Bioscouring: Dielectric Barrier Discharge Versus Low-Pressure Oxygen Plasma

The hydrophobic cuticle of the cotton fiber has formed a natural barrier for pectinase to catalyze its substrates (pectins beneath the cuticle), thus resulting in an insufficient scouring for cotton. Two plasma-based treatments, dielectric barrier discharge (DBD) at atmospheric pressure and cold oxygen plasma at low pressure in a vacuum system, were used as the pretreatments prior to cotton bioscouring, aiming at increasing the accessibility of pectinases to the pectic substances on the cotton fiber. The effects of different processing parameters of DBD and oxygen plasmas on the wettability, whiteness and burst strength of pectinase-scoured cotton were determined and compared. Although both of the pretreatments could enhance cotton bioscouring, DBD might be more suitable for current bioscouring due to its continuous processing mode and lower requirements to the equipment.