Active oxygen species (AOS), e.g., excited singlet oxygen atom [O(¹D)], excited singlet oxygen molecules (¹O₂), ground-state oxygen atom [O(³P)] and hydroxyl radical (OH), generated under two wavelengths (185 and 254 nm) of ultraviolet (UV) light were exposed to polyethylene (PE), polypropylene (PP) and polystyrene (PS) sheets. We investigated effects of the AOS exposure on the surface modification of these polymer sheets. Nonwoven sheet was used for the surface modification to eliminate an effect of the UV light irradiation. Although hydrophobicity of the PE and PP surfaces was maintained, the PS was changed into the hydrophilic surface.