PLASMA CHEMISTRY
Group Leader: Ricardo Molina
The research in Plasma Chemistry Group is focused on the technological applications of non-thermal plasmas (low and atmospheric pressure). The activity and interest of the group deals with different plasma processes:
- Surface functionalization: tailoring of adhesion and wetting properties.
- Plasma treatment in liquids: elimination of contaminants in wastewater and plasma initiated polymerization for development of stimuli sensitive polymer coatings.
- Plasma treatment of biomaterials: sterilization, plasma in medicine (cancer treatment and rare diseases), use of plasma in agriculture and food.
Plasma technologies allow modulating surface properties of a material by means of increasing surface hydrophycility (using oxidizing gases), providing hydrophobicity or oleophobicity (using fluorinated gases), incorporation of new functional groups (using gases containing amines) or by means of film deposition or polymerization of functional or multifunctional thin films (using polymerizing and reactive gases). Thus, high performance materials can be obtained without modifying bulk properties.
Main research lines of Plasma Chemistry Group are:
- Selective surface modification (polymers, textiles, SAMs, etc).
- Plasma assisted polymerization in liquids and new functional coatings on textile materials.
- Degradation of contaminant organic compounds in water.
- Surface sterilization.
Scientific staff
Ricardo Molina
Tenured Scientist
ricardo.molina@iqac.csic.es
- Comparative analysis of the germination of barley seeds subjected to drying, hydrogen peroxide, or oxidative air plasma treatments
Perea-Brenes, A., Gómez-Ramírez, A., López-Santos, C., Oliva-Ramírez, M., Molina, R., Cotrino, J., García, J.L., Cantos, M., González-Elipe, A.R.
Plasma Processes and Polymers, 2022
- Laser-induced scanning transfer deposition of silver electrodes on glass surfaces: A green and scalable technology
Molina, R., Ertuğrul, M., Larrea, Á., Navarro, R., Rico, V., Yubero, F., González-Elipe, A.R., de la Fuente, G.F., Angurel, L.A.
Applied Surface Science, 556, art. no. 149673, 2021
- Factors triggering germination in plasma-activated cotton seeds: Water imbibition vs. reactive species' formation
Arroyo, E., De Navascues, P., Gómez-Ramírez, A., Molina, R., Perea, A., Garciá, J.L., Cotrino, J., Cantos, M., González-Elipe, A.R., López-Santos, C.
Journal of Physics D: Applied Physics, 54 (32), 2021
- Physicochemical surface analysis and germination at different irrigation conditions of DBD plasma-treated wheat seeds
Molina, R., Lalueza, A., López-Santos, C., Ghobeira, R., Cools, P., Morent, R., de Geyter, N., González-Elipe, A.R.
Plasma Processes and Polymers, 2020
- Effect of liquid impregnation on DBD atmospheric pressure plasma treatment of cotton
Molina, R., Bitar, R., Cools, P., Morent, R., De Geyter, N.
Cellulose, . 2020
- Influence of irrigation conditions in the germination of plasma treated Nasturtium seeds
Molina, R., López-Santos, C., Gómez-Ramírez, A., Vílchez, A., Espinós, J.P., González-Elipe, A.R.
Scientific Reports, 8 (1), art. no. 16442, . 2018
- Removal of priority pollutants from water by means of dielectric barrier discharge atmospheric plasma
Hijosa-Valsero, M., Molina, R., Schikora, H., Müller, M., Bayona, J.M.
J Hazard Mater. (2013), 262, pp. 664-673. Cited 45 times.
- Parametric study of CF4 plasma on the hydrophobicity of polyester synthetic leather
Kwong, C.H., Ng, S.P., Kan, C.W., Molina, R.
Fibers and Polymers (2013), 14 (10), pp. 1608-1613. Cited 13 times.
- Antifungal efficiency of corona pretreated polyester and polyamide fabrics loaded with Ag nanoparticles
Ilić, V., Šaponjić, Z., Vodnik, V., Molina, R., Dimitrijević, S., Jovančić, P., Nedeljković, J., Radetić, M.
J Mater Sci. (2009), 44 (15), pp. 3983-3990. Cited 51 times.
- Surface chemistry and germination improvement of Quinoa seeds subjected to plasma activation
Gómez-Ramírez, A., López-Santos, C., Cantos, M., García, J.L., Molina, R., Cotrino, J., Espinós, J.P., González- Elipe, A.R.
Scientific Reports. (2017), 7 (1), art. no. 5924 . Cited 3 times
- Hydrophobic Coatings on Cotton Obtained by in Situ Plasma Polymerization of a Fluorinated Monomer in Ethanol Solutions
Molina, R., Teixidó, J.M., Kan, C.-W., Jovančić, P.
ACS Appl Mater Interface. (2017), 9 (6), pp. 5513-5521. Cited 1 time.
- Dynamic vapour sorption and thermoporometry of polyamide fabrics coated with chitosan hydrogels
Vílchez, S., Manich, A.M., Miras, J., Molina, R., Erra, P., Esquena, J.
Thermochim Acta. (2016), 639, pp. 47-52. Cited 1 time.
- Synthesis of Thermo-Sensitive Hydrogels from Free Radical Copolymerization of NIPAAm with MBA Initiated by Atmospheric Plasma Treatment
Jovančić, P., Vílchez, A., Molina, R.
Plasma Process Polym. (2016), 13 (7), pp. 752-760. Cited 3 times.
- UV PROTECTIVE TEXTILES BY THE DEPOSITION OF FUNCTIONAL ETHYLCELLULOSE NANOPARTICLES.
Vílchez-Maldonado, S.; Calderó, G.; Esquena, J.; Molina, R.
Cellulose 2014, 21, 2133-2145
- Assessment of a dielectric barrier discharge plasma reactor at atmospheric pressure for the removal of bisphenol A and tributyltin
Hijosa-Valsero, M., Molina, R., Bayona, J.M.
Environmental Technology (United Kingdom) (2014), 35 (11), pp. 1418-1426. Cited 4 times.
- In situ chitosan gelation initiated by atmospheric plasma treatment
Molina, R., Jovancic, P., Vilchez, S., Tzanov, T., Solans, C.
Carbohydr Polymers. (2014), 103 (1), pp. 472-479. Cited 16 times.
- Hydrophilic-oleophobic coatings on cellulosic materials by plasma assisted polymerization in liquid phase and fluorosurfactant complexation
Molina, R., Gómez, M., Kan, C.-W., Bertran, E.
Cellulose (2014), 21 (1), pp. 729-739. Cited 7 times.
- Inducing hydrophobic surface on polyurethane synthetic leather by atmospheric pressure plasma
Kwong, C.H., Ng, S.P., Kan, C.W., Molina, R.
Fibers and Polymers (2014), 15 (8), pp. 1596-1600. Cited 12 times.
- UV protective textiles by the deposition of functional ethylcellulose nanoparticles
Vílchez-Maldonado, S., Calderó, G., Esquena, J., Molina, R.
Cellulose (2014), 21 (3), pp. 2133-2145. Cited 5 times.
- In situ polymerization of aqueous solutions of NIPAAm initiated by atmospheric plasma treatment
Molina, R., Ligero, C., Jovančić, P., Bertran, E.
Plasma Process Polym. (2013), 10 (6), pp. 506-516. Cited 12 times.
- Surface functionalization of macroporous polymeric materials by treatment with air low temperature plasma
Molina, R., Sole, I., Vílchez, A., Bertran, E., Solans, C., Esquena, J.
J Nanosci Nanotechnol. (2013), 13 (4), pp. 2819-2825. Cited 6 times.
- Hijosa-Valsero, M., Molina, R., Schikora, H., Müller, M., Bayona, J.M. Removal of cyanide from water by means of plasma discharge technology.
Water Res. (2013), 47 (4), pp. 1701-1707. Cited 31 times.
- Novel properties of PES fabrics modified by corona discharge and colloidal TiO2 nanoparticles
Mihailović, D., Šaponjić, Z., Radoičić, M., Molina, R., Radetić, T., Jovančić, P., Nedeljković, J., Radetić, M.
Polym Adv Technol. (2011), 22 (5), pp. 703-709. Cited 7 times.
- Multifunctional properties of polyester fabrics modified by corona discharge/air RF plasma and colloidal TiO2 nanoparticles
Mihailović, D., Šaponjić, Z., Molina, R., Radoičić, M., Esquena, J., Jovančić, P., Nedeljković, J., Radetić, M.
Polymer Composites (2011), 32 (3), pp. 390-397. Cited 14 times.
- Improved properties of oxygen and argon RF plasma-activated polyester fabrics loaded with TiO2 nanoparticles
Mihailović, D., Šaponjić, Z., Molina, R., Puač, N., Jovančić, P., Nedeljković, J., Radetić, M.
ACS Appl Mater Interface. (2010), 2 (6), pp. 1700-1706. Cited 33 times.
- Interfacial processes in textile materials: Relevance to adhesion
Molina, R., Esquena, J., Erra, P.
J Adhes Sci Technol. (2010), 24 (1), pp. 7-33. Cited 5 times.
