Publicação
Design and Characterization of Paper-based Plasma Generators for Sterilization
| Resumo: | Nowadays, proper sterilization of surfaces, objects, and even ourselves is a constant need. This work describes the fabrication and thorough characterization of simplistic and disposable plasma-based generators for microbial disinfection, made from metalized paper with aluminum in reference to a previous design developed by Mazzeo et al. These devices rely on the working principle of the dielectric barrier discharge and the generation of plasma was carried out inside a vacuum chamber where different atmospheres were tested. The experimental results demonstrated that additional layers of materials with higher resistance to corrosion and oxidation than aluminum brought no improvements or advantages to reduce the surface degradation by plasmas. These paper-based plasma generators' optical emission spectra indicated that many reactive species desirable in applications such as biological decontamination are produced in the glow discharge. On another note, these generators achieved tolerable biological temperatures (T<40 ºC), representing an excellent approach to the generation of non-thermal plasmas (T<70 ºC). Beyond their characterization, this thesis demonstrated these devices' ability to generate plasma on a reduced scale and a possible optimization method of the decontamination process through plasma confinement. Towards these paper-based generators' stability, they were capable of generating plasma that lasted for more than one hour. |
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| Autores principais: | Tavares, Maria Francisca Pires da Silva Carvalhão |
| Assunto: | plasma dielectric barrier discharge paper-based plasma generators sterilization miniaturization |
| Ano: | 2021 |
| País: | Portugal |
| Tipo de documento: | dissertação de mestrado |
| Tipo de acesso: | acesso aberto |
| Instituição associada: | Universidade Nova de Lisboa |
| Idioma: | inglês |
| Origem: | Repositório Institucional da UNL |
| Resumo: | Nowadays, proper sterilization of surfaces, objects, and even ourselves is a constant need. This work describes the fabrication and thorough characterization of simplistic and disposable plasma-based generators for microbial disinfection, made from metalized paper with aluminum in reference to a previous design developed by Mazzeo et al. These devices rely on the working principle of the dielectric barrier discharge and the generation of plasma was carried out inside a vacuum chamber where different atmospheres were tested. The experimental results demonstrated that additional layers of materials with higher resistance to corrosion and oxidation than aluminum brought no improvements or advantages to reduce the surface degradation by plasmas. These paper-based plasma generators' optical emission spectra indicated that many reactive species desirable in applications such as biological decontamination are produced in the glow discharge. On another note, these generators achieved tolerable biological temperatures (T<40 ºC), representing an excellent approach to the generation of non-thermal plasmas (T<70 ºC). Beyond their characterization, this thesis demonstrated these devices' ability to generate plasma on a reduced scale and a possible optimization method of the decontamination process through plasma confinement. Towards these paper-based generators' stability, they were capable of generating plasma that lasted for more than one hour. |
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