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Frequently Asked Questions

Here you find frequently asked questions about our plasma products.

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Cold active plasma system piezobrush®
Atmospheric plasma system plasmabrush® PB3

Cold active plasma system piezobrush®

Is the piezobrush® a corona treater?

No, the piezobrush® is a jet with higher intensity and lower charging effects.

Which materials can be processed?

All Materials can be processed. For metals or conductors please avoid arcing at low working distance. Informations on working speed, working distance and surface effect, we refer to detailed application notes that you can get from our application engineers.

What is the optimum working distance?

For most of the polymers and isolators the best working distance ranges between 2mm and 5mm.

How fast should I move the piezobrush® at optimum working distance?

For most of the polymers a substantial increase in wettability will be reached if the PZ2 is moved with 10mm/s to 50mm/s.

How much stronger will be my bond if I use the PZ2 before applying the glue?

The bond strength depends on material and glue. You will find a lot of different examples in our application notes.

How long does the surface activation last?

The surface energy will decrease after the treatment on a timescale of minutes to days. However the surface energy will still remain higher than the initial value.

How can I test the surface effect with simple means?

Try to wet the surface with water or water based ink. If the ink spreads on the surface 72mN/m are reached.

Can I overtreat a component?

Typically the surface energy will quickly saturate. Overtreatment will not damage the material.

Can I use the piezobrush® for cleaning off dirt?

Very thin layers of organics can be removed. Thick layers will not be removed efficiently.

Can the piezobrush® kill microorganisms?

Yes, depending on the species and environment germs are efficiently inactivated or killed.

Are there special purpose nozzles for the PZ2?

Yes, specially for point treatment and conducting surfaces there are special nozzles. Please clarify your specific requirements with our application engineers.

How often should the white nozzle be exchanged?

Under normal operation the nozzle will last for much more than 100 hours. If staining or color change is visible the nozzle can be changed easily.

Does the piezobrush® emit UV light?

Yes, but the UV emission using air is of low intensity and harmless.

How high is the ozone emission?

Operated with air the piezobrush® produces ozone wit a maximum concentration of 10ppm and a rate of 25L/min. If used continuously, an active carbon filter or an hood should be used.

Can the piezobrush® cause skin damage?

Yes, if the piezobrush® is placed close to the skin, local burn pattern can cause superficial skin damage.

Can the piezobrush® cause dangerous electric shock?

No, the amount of charge and the current are too low to be dangerous.

Atmospheric plasma system plasmabrush® PB3

Which materials can be processed?

All Materials can be processed. For thermally sensitive materials the choice of the nozzle and suitable working speed and distance are crucial. Informations on working speed, working distance and surface effect, we refer to detailed application notes that you can get from our application engineers.

What is the optimum working distance?

For most applications the best working distance ranges between 6mm and 25mm.

How fast should I move the plasmabrush® PB3 over the surface?

Working speed depends on material and process details and can be calculated in first approximation. Consult our application engineers.

How much stronger will be my bond if I use the PB3 before applying the glue?

The bond strength depends on glue and material. You will find many examples in our application notes.

How long does the surface activation last?

The surface energy will decrease after the treatment on a timeframe of minutes to days. However the surface energy will allways remain higher than the initial value.

How can I test the surface effect with simple means?

Try to wet the surface with water or water based ink. If the ink spreads on the surface 72mN/m are reached. Of cource you can also use special test inks for more detailed information.

Can I overtreat a component?

Yes, you can cause thermal damage or the surface energy will decrease if the component is overtreated.

Can I use the plasmabrush® PB3 for cleaning off dirt?

Yes, the PB3 can clean off oil, emuslsions and mold release agents.

How often should the nozzle be exchanged?

Under normal operation condition with air the nozzle will last for typically 400 hours.

Does the plasmabrush® PB3 emit UV light?

Yes, but the UV emission using air is of low intensity and harmless at normal working distances of >200mm.

Does the plasmabrush® PB3 emit dangerous gases?

Depending on process conditions the PB3 can emit ozone or nitroxides. We recommend to use an active filter or to exhaust the gas load into a hood.

Can the plasmabrush® PB3 cause skin burns?

Yes, the plasmabrush® PB3 can cause burns if the hot gas jet is directed directly onto the skin at close distance (<50mm). Also after swich off the nozzle can still be very hot.

Can the plasmabrush® PB3 cause dangerous electric shock?

No, the amount of charge and the current are too low to be dangerous.

Is the offered system ESD proof?

Yes, the A250 nozzle of our plasmabrush® PB3 system is specifically designed for the treatment of ESD sensitive parts.

Can multiple plasma heads be used on one generator or does each head require a separate control unit?

Each plasmabrush® PB3 system consists of the high voltage source PS2000 (compact design for integration in 19" racks), 9 m of high voltage cable (suitable for robots and drag chains) and the plasmagenerator PG31 (very compact, weighing less than 1 kg).

How many different recipes/parameter settings are possible?

The plasmabrush® PB3 allows for power as well as frequency setting at the high voltage source. Other important parameter include the choice of nozzle, the choice of process gas (CDA, nitrogen, forming gas, etc.) and the gas flow (35-80 slm).

If several recipes/parameter settings can be used: What is the concept to import, load and use different internally stored recipes?

Since the most important process parameters are speed and nozzle-susbtrate distance we determine these in close coordination with the process owner. If changes have to be made to the parameters of the high voltage source these can simply be accessed via the communication interface.

Can recipes/parameter settings be imported via MES or the SPS of the production cell?

Yes, the plasmabrush® PB3 system can communicate via CANopen (Standard), EtherCat, Profinet, Profibus, etc.

Are different nozzles / different nozzle designs available?

Three different standard noozle designs are available: A250 for ESD sensitive substrates, A350 for temperature sensitive materials and A450 for high-speed processes. We also offer long-life versions of our standard nozzles.

What's the concept on how to exchange the nozzles?

Nozzles can be exchanged without tools by instructed personnel.

What's the range of the possible treatment area / width?

The treatment width of the plasmabrush® PB3 system ranges between 15 and 25 mm for one pass. Larger widths can either be achieved by the use of additional plasmagenerators or by meandering which is easily possbile due to high process speed and lightweight plasma head.

What's the available power range?

The plasma jet output ranges from 480 - 770 W

Which process parameters are controlled / monitored / tracked?

The plasmabrush® PB3 system allows the control of power and frequency. Via the communication interface of the high voltage source PS2000 power, current and voltage of the plasma jet can be monitored in real time.

How does the communication of the plasma system with a cell-SPS work? Which data interfaces are available standardly?

The plasmabrush® PB3 system can communicate via CANopen (Standard), EtherCat, Profinet, Profibus, etc. but also simply with digital signals. There is also a LabView based interface available.

Which data can be send through this interface? Which data formats are available?

The CANopen project directory is listed in the manual (see page 16-20) and includes object types (VAR, ARRAY, RECORD, etc.) and data types (VISIBLE_STRING, UNSIGNED8, etc.). The .eds-file is included in the scope of delivery.

Which process exhaust gases occur during the plasma process?

The plasmabrush PB3 system generates exhaust gases typical for high power jet plasma systems, like NOx and ozone. The quantities are dependent on the process gas. Detailed analysis are available.

Was the electromagnetical radiation measured for your system?

The plasmabrush® PB3 system is CE certified and complies with all relevant regulations. Both certification and analysis are available.

What's the typical size, weight etc. of the plasma system.

The plasmabrush® PB3 is a modular system consisting of: high voltage source PS2000 for 19 inch rack (448x343x177,18 kg), high voltage cable suitable for robot and drag chain (9 m) and plasmagenerator PG31 (1 m cable length, 32 mm diameter, 680 g). Please find all relevant data in the manuals attached.

Please describe how the plasma system can be mounted in a production cell.

The high voltage source fits into a 19 inch rack, the 9 m high voltage cable is suitable for robots and drag chains and can be separated from the plasmagenerator PG31 which can be easily integrated with a plastic or metal mount due to ist low weight and compact design. Step files are available.

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