Biodegumming of ramie fiber with pectinases enhanced by oxygen plasma

• A novel plasma aided biodegumming process for ramie substrate was developed.
• The biodegumming process involving plasma treatment for ramie fabric was optimized.
• Enzyme was reduced in half for the plasma-aided process compared to traditional one.
• Better results were achieved with plasma-aided process compared to traditional one.
• Notable etching effect and wettability on ramie were obtained from plasma species.

A novel biodegumming process with pectinases for ramie fiber was developed in combination with oxygen plasma, in order to improve the efficiency of enzymes in impurity degradation. The results show that a notable positive influence of oxygen plasma on the biodegumming of ramie was achieved, in comparison with a conventional biodegumming process. The fabric weight loss, capillary rise height and whiteness of ramie fabric were evidently improved by employing the oxygen plasma-aided biodegumming process with a half dosage of enzymes, in comparison with a conventional experiment at different temperatures, solution pH values and treatment times. An optimized plasma-aided biodegumming process for raw ramie fabric was recommended with a temperature of 75 °C, a pH value of 8.0 in subjected solution for 60.0 min. Moreover, the role of oxygen plasma on ramie biodegumming was further confirmed by static water contact angle measurement and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) analysis.

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