ATMOSPHERIC-PRESSURE PLASMA TREATMENT SYSTEM

• US 20160329193A1
• Filed: 05/05/2015
• Published: 11/10/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 05/05/2015
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Eastman Kodak Company
• Original Assignee: Eastman Kodak Company
• Inventors: Sieber, Kurt D., Cok, Ronald Steven
• Application Number:
  US14/704,373
• Publication Number:
  US 20160329193A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: H01J 37/32449 Gas control, e.g. control of the gas flow
• CPC Class Codes: H05H 1/46 using applied electromagnetic fields, e.g. high frequency or microwave energy H05H1/26 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H05H 1/466 using capacitive coupling means, e.g. electrodes

Abstract

An atmospheric-pressure plasma treatment system includes a plasma source including an AC power supply, at least one electrode, and a gas in a gas chamber. A radial-flow surface has a jet nozzle through which the gas flows. A pre-cursor distributor feeds one or more precursor chemicals into the gas flow.

Claims

1. An atmospheric-pressure plasma treatment system, comprising:

a plasma source including an AC power supply, at least one electrode, and a gas in a gas chamber;

a radial-flow surface having a jet nozzle through which the gas flows; and

a pre-cursor distributor for feeding one or more precursor chemicals into the gas flow.

2. The atmospheric-pressure plasma treatment system of claim 1, wherein the pre-cursor distributor includes at least one pre-cursor outlet through which the pre-cursor chemicals flow into the gas flow.

3. The atmospheric-pressure plasma treatment system of claim 2, wherein the at least one pre-cursor outlet is upstream of the jet nozzle.

4. The atmospheric-pressure plasma treatment system of claim 2, wherein the pre-cursor outlet is in the radial-flow surface.

5. The atmospheric-pressure plasma treatment system of claim 1, wherein the gas is inert.

6. The atmospheric-pressure plasma treatment system of claim 1, wherein the gas is reactive.

7. The atmospheric-pressure plasma treatment system of claim 1, further including first and second gases and wherein the gas chamber includes a gas-flow controller that controls the flow of the first gas and the flow of the second gas.

8. The atmospheric-pressure plasma treatment system of claim 7, wherein the gas-flow controller controls the first gas to flow through the jet nozzle at a first time and then controls the second gas to flow through the jet nozzle at a second time after the first time or vice versa.

9. The atmospheric-pressure plasma treatment system of claim 7, wherein the first gas is an inert gas and the second gas is a reactive gas.

10. The atmospheric-pressure plasma treatment system of claim 7, wherein the gas-flow controller controls the first and second gases to form a bubble of the second gas within the first gas.

11. The atmospheric-pressure plasma treatment system of claim 7, wherein the gas chamber includes a first chamber for the first gas and a second chamber for the second gas.

12. The atmospheric-pressure plasma treatment system of claim 7, wherein the gas-flow controller controls the first gas to mix with the second gas within the jet nozzle.

13. The atmospheric-pressure plasma treatment system of claim 7, further including a gas mixing chamber in the gas chamber and wherein the gas-flow controller controls the first gas to mix with the second gas within the gas mixing chamber.

14. The atmospheric-pressure plasma treatment system of claim 1, wherein the flow of gas is a collimated flow of gas.

15. The atmospheric-pressure plasma treatment system of claim 1, wherein the plasma source is a first plasma source, the radial-flow surface is a first radial-flow surface, the jet nozzle is a first nozzle, and the gas is a first gas;

and

further including a second plasma source having a second radial-flow surface having a second nozzle through which a second gas passes.

16. The atmospheric-pressure plasma treatment system of claim 15, wherein the first plasma source is located to provide a first plasma to a first side of an object and the second plasma source is located to provide a second plasma to a second side of the object.

17. The atmospheric-pressure plasma treatment system of claim 15, wherein the first gas is a different gas than the second gas.

18. The atmospheric-pressure plasma treatment system of claim 1, wherein the plasma source includes a piezoelectric element and the AC power supply has a voltage amplitude that is less than or equal to 50 volts.

19. The atmospheric-pressure plasma treatment system of claim 1, wherein the precursor distributor includes tubular injectors having a tubular injector angle β

with respect to the radial-flow surface that is less than or equal to 90 degrees and greater than or equal to 5 degrees.

20. The atmospheric-pressure plasma treatment system of claim 4, wherein the precursor outlet in the radial flow surface is positioned within a sub-atmospheric-pressure zone produced during confined jet impingement.