The surfaces of solid materials can be treated by various techniques and processes. In this dissertation, a novel type of device for generating a non-thermal dielectric barrier discharge plasma in a floating electrode configuration was developed and successfully applied to the continuous surface treatment process of solid wood and other lignocellulosic materials. The experimental work included the study of the influence of various parameters of the plasma treatment process on the properties of the treated surfaces and their interactions with applied water-based coating and adhesives. The properties of the generated plasma discharges were dependent on the inherent properties of the substrates and the set device parameters. Treatment of the fresh and aged or weathered substrates with plasma resulted in an oxidation of the surfaces, leading to increased surface free energy, improved hydrophilicity, and wettability of the wood surface with coating and adhesives. The improved interactions with water-based coating and adhesives were observed on plasma-treated natural wood, thermally modified wood, medium density fiberboard, particleboard, and metals. The pretreatment of wood with plasma had no effect on the coating penetration depth in wood. This type of pretreatment technique has proven to be a good alternative to conventional surface treatment processes.
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