Smell reduction and disinfection of textile materials by dielectric barrier discharges

In this paper we present investigations of textile cleaning of cotton fabrics with respect to both, the smell reduction and the disinfection of textile materials. Normal pressure plasma sources on the base of dielectric barrier discharge (DBD) were used for the purification and disinfection of textiles. For gaseous odour components which stick to clothing the results have shown that one can reach an uncritical odour threshold. In the case of disinfection a significant reduction of microorganism population in some of the samples could be noted. In particular a high reactivity is reached, while in parallel with a radiation by ultraviolet light ozone is activated.