Plastics News - Show Daily - October 24, 2022 - 19

SHOW DAILY
Plastics News, October 24, 2022 * 19
Plasmatreat wants industry
to see 'what is possible'
PLASMATREAT
GMBH
Hall 11,
Booth I65
A glass-enclosed, solar-powered, asymmetrical race car designed by
Belgian students as part of the " Punch One " project.
Plasmatreat GmbH photo
By Andrew Schunk
Rubber News
Before Plasmatreat GmbH was
founded by engineer-by-trade and
CEO Christian Buske in 1995, coating
a surface by way of plasma was
possible only in a vacuum.
Buske changed all of that with
his initial work on a car headlamp,
pioneering the Openair Plasma
technology that now serves as the
foundation for a company that has
grown to 300 employees and saw
sales of $54.6 million in 2021.
" There are so many new possibilities
- if the industry is able to
understand what is possible, " Buske
said at an Oct. 20 news conference.
" About 67 percent of our turnover is
polymer surfaces ... so the K show
is the most important show for us. "
Traffi c at the Plasmatreat booth
at the plastics and rubber exposition
was constant and curious
on the second day of the show, as
technicians and engineers demonstrated
the varying sizes of plasma
" guns, " essentially different sizes of
robotic arms that can treat surfaces
of different areas.
The tip of the plasma arm - the
nozzle that emits the air or gas that
" activates " a surface, enriching it
with oxygen and nitrogen groups -
actually never touches the surface.
What results, according to
Buske, is a surface that has been
imparted with different characteristics,
depending on what a
customer might need.
Plasma treatment can make a
surface hydrophilic or hydrophobic;
clean the surface and remove
contamination; or make the surface
conducive for bonding or adhesion
increasing the wettability.
It works on polymers, metals,
paper and glass, among other substrates,
as its high-energy levels alter
the particular surface composition
through nanocoating.
According to Buske, the fi ne
cleaning of metal and glass, for example,
" gently and safely removes
dust, grease, release agents and additives, "
and in the case of polypropylene
or polyethylene, increases
surface energy through the introduction
of hydroxyl groups.
" In both cases, an optimized wettability
of the substrate is achieved,
and the adhesion ability signifi cantly
increased, " Buske said.
Bonding, printing, painting or gasketing
can then follow with ease of
treatment, he said.
End-use applications can be
found in technology used in dryers,
on windmills as an anti-ice coating
or on materials that require an anti-fl
ame coating.
" With Openair Plasma, you have
the opportunity to use cheaper
materials once the particular surface
is treated, " said Lukas Buske,
Christian's son and head of plasma
applications at Plasmatreat.
" It's also good for large areas that
require treatment - typically on
areas where an adhesive will be
dispensed. "
And the entire process - save
the energy needed to create the
plasma - is environmentally friendly,
as no CO2 or other greenhouse
gases are emitted.
With sustainability at the fore for
this year's K show, Plasmatreat fi ts
right in among the plastics machinery
makers and processors.
" All you need is clean, dry air and
electricity, " Lukas said. " It works
without fl ammable gas and without
CO2 emissions. "
Magnus Buske, head of research
and development at Plasmatreat,
said the application typically uses
only compressed air.
" It's the cheapest material you
can get, " he said. " Though we are
looking into the ionization of hydrogen,
argon, even pure oxygen (as a
plasma distribution medium). Each
adhesive needs something different
on the surface (to optimize it). "
In many instances, surfaces
like the dashboard of a car are
treated with a solvent such as
benzene, which is a carcinogen
and evaporates quickly. China already
has sworn off such primer
base solvents.
" You can't even bring them into
the country, " Christian Buske said,
adding that an alternative like his
company's plasma treatment can fi ll
that gap.
He said Plasmatreat customers
can save on raw materials as polypropylene
or polyethylene becomes
much less " CO2-emitting. "
" We can get rid of the gas, " he
said. " We don't burn anything, so we
do not emit CO2 or carbons. Diaper
manufacturers, for example, could
replace this gas treatment. "
Partnerships for Plasmatreat are
essential, the CEO said, and the
growing company has established
collaborations with universities
around the world for increased
studies on the application.
" We understand we are a bridge
to science labs and other industries,
between history and the future, "
Christian said.
And he said Plasmatreat is ready
for what future breakthroughs may
come.
" We are ready for the future. I see
the future right in front of me, " he
said, referring to Lukas and Magnus,
as well as the pioneering nature of
the company he founded.
One example of a Plasmatreat
application is hard to miss at
this year's K show, as a glass-enclosed,
solar-powered, asymmetrical
race car, designed by Belgian
students as part of the " Punch
One " project, greets visitors at
Plasmatreat's booth.
" Thanks to plasma treatment, we
managed to get an optimal adhesion
between the car's outer shell, suspension
and structural ribs while
keeping material usage and weight
to a minimum, " said Jarno Van
Hemelen, Punch One project manager,
in a release.
In addition to that, Openair Plasma
can also be used to improve the
processing of recycled plastics.
Thus far, the patented Openair
Plasma technology is used in automated
and continuous manufacturing
processes in almost every
industry, including automotive,
transportation, packaging, consumer
goods and textiles.
And the reduced costs and environmental
advantages associated
with the application process has
seen Plasmatreat fi nd its way into
medical technology and renewable
energy sectors, as well.
Plasmatreat, based in Steinhagen,
Germany, has technology centers in
Germany, the U.S., Canada, China
and Japan. It is represented in more
than 30 countries by subsidiaries
and sales partners.
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Plastics News - Show Daily - October 24, 2022

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