**7. Conclusion**

As has been demonstrated, plasma treatments of textiles look very promising. They can be used both in substitution of conventional processes and for the production of innovative textile materials with properties that cannot be achieved via wet processing. They are applicable, in principle, to all substrates, even to those that cannot be modified by conventional methods. In general, no significant alteration of bulk properties is produced.

They are fast and extremely gentle, as well as environmentally friendly, being dry processes characterised by low consumption of chemicals and energy. When they cannot replace an existing wet process (dyeing and some finishing), if used as pre-treatments, they can reduce markedly the amount of chemicals required by the process and the concentration of pollutants in the effluents.

The great advances of the last decades in the field of the science of materials are now ready to enter into the field of textiles and it is already possible to envisage that, in the next ten years, the clothing–textile industry will undergo a dramatic revolution. Smart textiles, completely new fibres (nanofibres, etc.), and new textile applications in unexpected fields can be expected. Also, our way to consider clothing is going to change completely. Environmental aspects are going to play a more and more important role. Under these perspectives, plasma processes are certainly going to supersede many traditional finishing processes.
