US5378510A
Expired / Lapsed
US
⏱️ 0.0 years remaining
Methods and apparatus for depositing barrier coatings
Assignee: Polar Materials Inc
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Filing: 1994-02-15
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Granted: 1995-01-03
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Expires: 2014-02-15
Abstract
Abstract A barrier coating is formed on a polymeric article, such as on the interior of a thermoplastic container. An oxidizing gas is converted to a plasma in a plasma chamber remote from the treatment chamber. The resulting plasma-activated oxidizing species are delivered to the interior of the container. An organosilicon reactant vapor is separately but simultaneously delivered to the interior of the container so that the organosilicon vapor and oxidizing active species mix within the container. An electric field is also applied to the container, so that the reaction products are deposited under the influence of the electrical field to form the barrier coating.
Inventors
- 👤 H. Ronald Thomas
- 👤 Robert J. Babacz
- 👤 Robert R. Newton
Bibliographic Details
Application Number
—
Jurisdiction
US
Data Source
google_patents
Last Synchronized
2026-10-30 13:44
CPC Classifications
B; B05; B05D; B05D1/00; B05D1/62; C; C23; C23C; C23C16/00; C23C16/04; C23C16/045; C23C16/22; C23C16/30; C23C16/40; C23C16/401; C23C16/44; C23C16/455; C23C16/45563; C23C16/45574; B05D7/00; B05D7/22; B05D7/227; Y; Y10; Y10T; Y10T428/00; Y10T428/13; Y10T428/1352; Y10T428/1379; Y10T428/139
Claims Analysis
Total Claims: 22
Claim 1
Independent Claim
297 words
A method of forming a barrier coating on a polymeric article comprising the steps of: (a) passing an oxidizing gas in a downstream direction through a plasma zone remote from said article and converting said oxidizing gas to a plasma in said plasma zone so that said plasma forms activated oxidizing gas species as it passes downstream from said plasma zone; (b) delivering said activated species to the vicinity of said article; (c) delivering an organosilicon vapor to the vicinity of said article separately from said activated species; (d) mixing said organosilicon vapor with said activated species in proximity to said article so that said organosilicon vapor reacts with said activated species while maintaining said mixed activates species and organosilicon vapor under subatmospheric pressure; and (e) applying an alternating electrical potential of about 10 v to about 5 Kv at a frequency between about 1 KHz and about 100 MHz, and at a power input of between about 0.05 watts/cm 2 and about 10.0 watts/cm 2 of article surface area to said mixed activated species and organosilicon vapor in proximity to said article so that reaction products formed from said mixed activated species and organosilicon vapor are deposited on said article under the influence of said alternating electrical potential and so that said deposited reaction products form a barrier coating on said polymeric article while maintaining said polymeric article at a temperature below the heat distortion temperature of the polymeric article, said barrier coating having at least one of i) permeance of oxygen of less than about 0.20 cc O 2 /100 in 2 -day-atm, ii) permeance of carbon dioxide of less than 1.0 cc CO 2 /100 in 2 -day-atm, or iii) permeance of water of less than 0.4 gm H 2 O/100 in 2 -day-atm.
Claim 2
Independent Claim
297 words
A method of forming a barrier coating on a polymeric article comprising the steps of: (a) passing an oxidizing gas in a downstream direction through a plasma zone remote from said article and converting said oxidizing gas to a plasma in said plasma zone so that said plasma forms activated oxidizing gas species as it passes downstream from said plasma zone; (b) delivering said activated species to the vicinity of said article; (c) delivering an organosilicon vapor to the vicinity of said article separately from said activated species; (d) mixing said organosilicon vapor with said activated species in proximity to said article so that said organosilicon vapor reacts with said activated species while maintaining said mixed activates species and organosilicon vapor under subatmospheric pressure; and (e) applying an alternating electrical potential of about 10 v to about 5 Kv at a frequency between about 1 KHz and about 100 MHz, and at a power input of between about 0.05 watts/cm 2 and about 10.0 watts/cm 2 of article surface area to said mixed activated species and organosilicon vapor in proximity to said article so that reaction products formed from said mixed activated species and organosilicon vapor are deposited on said article under the influence of said alternating electrical potential and so that said deposited reaction products form a barrier coating on said polymeric article while maintaining said polymeric article at a temperature below the heat distortion temperature of the polymeric article, said barrier coating having at least one of i) permeance of oxygen of less than about 0.20 cc O 2 /100 in 2 -day-atm, ii) permeance of carbon dioxide of less than 1.0 cc CO 2 /100 in 2 -day-atm, or iii) permeance of water of less than 0.4 gm H 2 O/100 in 2 -day-atm.
Claim 3
Dependent Claim
68 words
A method as claimed in claim 1 wherein said polymeric article is hollow, said delivering and mixing steps being conducted so as to deliver said activated species and said organosilicon vapor separately to the interior of said hollow article and mix said activated species and said organosilicon vapor within the interior of said hollow article and thereby deposit said reaction products on the interior of said hollow article.
Claim 4
Dependent Claim
51 words
A method as claimed in claim 2 further comprising the step of rotating said hollow article about an axis during said delivering steps, said delivering steps including the step of delivering said activated species and said organosilicon vapor through a tube and conduit extending into said hollow article adjacent said axis.
Claim 5
Dependent Claim
33 words
A method as claimed in claim 3 further comprising the step of reciprocating said article relative to said tube and said conduit in directions generally parallel to said axis during said delivering steps.
Claim 6
Dependent Claim
29 words
A method as claimed in claim 2 further comprising the step of inducing rotational flow of said activated species and organosilicon vapor within the interior of said hollow article.
Claim 7
Dependent Claim
66 words
A method as claimed in claim 5 wherein said hollow article defines an axis, at least one of said delivering steps includes the step of discharging at least one of said organosilicon vapor and said activated species into the interior of said hollow article remote from the axis of the article and transverse to such axis, so as to induce said rotational flow about said axis.
Claim 8
Dependent Claim
27 words
A method as claimed in claim 2 wherein said potential-applying step includes the step of applying an electrical potential to an electrically-conductive shell surrounding said hollow article.
Claim 9
Dependent Claim
22 words
A method as claimed in claim 1 wherein said potential-applying step includes the step of applying said potential through said polymeric article.
Claim 10
Dependent Claim
44 words
A method as claimed in claim 8 wherein said potential-applying step includes the step of applying alternating potential to an electrically-conductive element while at least a portion of said polymeric article is disposed between said electrically-conductive element and said mixed activated species and vapors.
Claim 11
Dependent Claim
23 words
A method as claimed in claim 1 wherein said alternating potential has a frequency of between about 100 KHz and about 20 MHz.
Claim 12
Dependent Claim
25 words
A method as claimed in claim 1 wherein said organosilicon vapor included one or more constituents selected from the group consisting of siloxanes and silanes.
Claim 13
Dependent Claim
16 words
A method as claimed in claim 11 wherein said one or more constituents include hexamethyl disiloxane.
Claim 14
Dependent Claim
27 words
A method as claimed in claim 1 wherein said oxidizing gas includes one or more constituents selected from the group consisting of oxygen and oxides of nitrogen.
Claim 15
Dependent Claim
18 words
A method as claimed in claim 1 wherein said subatmospheric pressure is about 0.01 to about 1.0 Torr.
Claim 16
Dependent Claim
14 words
A method as claimed in claim 2 wherein said hollow article is a container.
Claim 17
Dependent Claim
49 words
A method as claimed in claim 1 wherein said steps of delivering organosilicon vapor and delivering activated species include the step of discharging said vapor and said species as streams in proximity to said article so that one of said streams substantially surrounds the other one of said streams.
Claim 18
Dependent Claim
20 words
A method as claimed in claim 16 wherein the stream of activated species substantially surrounds the stream of organosilicon vapors.
Claim 19
Dependent Claim
25 words
A method as claimed in claim 1 wherein said barrier coating is formed on said polymeric article in about 5 seconds to about 300 seconds.
Claim 20
Dependent Claim
25 words
A process as claimed in claim 1 wherein said polymeric article is maintained at a temperature below about 60° C. during deposition of the coating.
Claim 21
Dependent Claim
19 words
A process as claimed in claim 19 wherein said barrier coating is formed without substantially heating the polymeric article.
Claim 22
Dependent Claim
19 words
A process as claimed in claim 20 wherein said barrier coating is between about 500 and 2,000 Angstroms thick.
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USPTO Annuity & Maintenance Windows
| Annuity Stage | Window Opens | Payment Deadline | Surcharge Period Until | Estimated Fee | Status |
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| 3.5 Years (Year 4) | 1998-01-02 | 1998-07-04 | 1999-01-03 | $2000.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 7.5 Years (Year 8) | 2002-01-02 | 2002-07-04 | 2003-01-03 | $3760.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 11.5 Years (Year 12) | 2006-01-02 | 2006-07-04 | 2007-01-03 | $7700.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |