Electrospinning provides a viable method to produce both single fibers and mats of nonwoven fibers. For a nonwoven mat, fusing of the fibers at intersections produces an integrated structure. The ability to spin fibrous mats of nanofibers with and without fusing between the fibers is demonstrated using poly(ethylene oxide) (PEO) fibers. The fusing was controlled by adjusting the amount of water vapor in the surrounding environment. Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) and Transmission Electron Microscopy (TEM) images were used to evaluate the percent of fused fibers in the mat and the diameters of fibers. The major finding of this work is that fusing of fibers can be controlled during formation of a nanofibrous mat via electrospinning in a controlled environment.
References
1.
SubbiahT., BhatGS., TockRW., ParameswaranS., and Ram KumarSS. “Electrospinning of Nanofibers”, Journal of Applied Polymer Science, 96(2), 557–569, 2005.
2.
HuangZM., ZhangYZ., KotakiM., and RamakrishnaS.“A review on polymer nanofibers by electrospinning and their applications in nanocomposites”, Composites Science and Technology, 63(15), 2223–2253, 2003.
3.
LiD., WangY., and XiaY.“Electrospinning of Polymeric and Ceramic Nanofibers as Uniaxially Aligned Arrays”, Nano Letters, 3(8), 1167–1171, 2003.
ZongX., RanS., FangD., HsiaoBS., and ChuB.“Control of Structure, morphology and property in electrospun poly(glycolide-co-lactaide) non-woven membranes via post-draw treatments”, Polymer, 44(17), 4959–4967, 2003.
6.
BajiA., MaiYW., WongSC., AbtahiM., and ChenP.“Electrospinning of polymer nanofibers: Effects on oriented morphology, structures and tensile properties”, Composites Science and Technology, 70(5), 703–718, 2010.
7.
ChoiSS., LeeSG., JooCW., ImSS., and KimSH. “Formation of interfiber bonding in electrospun poly (etherimide) nanofiber web”, Journal of Materials Science, 39(4), 1511–1513, 2004.
8.
SalimT., SunS., WongLH., XiL., FooYL., and LamYM. “The Role of Poly(3-hexylthiophene) Nanofibers in an All-Polymer Blend with a Polyfluorene Copolymer for Solar Cell Applications”, The Journal of Physical Chemisty C, 114(20), 9459–9468, 2010.
9.
WuH., HuL., RowellMW., KongD., ChaJJ., McDonoughJR., ZhuJ., YangY., McGeheeMD., and CuiY.“Electrospun Metal Nanofiber Webs as High-Performance Transparent Electrode”, Nano Letters, 2010.
10.
YouY., LeeSW., LeeSJ., and ParkWH. “Thermal interfiber bonding of electrospun poly(L-lactic acid) nanofibers”, Materials Letters, 60(11), 1331–1333.
11.
HsuCM., and ShivkumarS.“Nano-sized beads and porous fiber constructs of Poly (∊-caprolactone) produced by electrospinning”, Journal of Materials Science, 39(9), 3003–3013, 2004.
12.
GrafeT., and GrahamK.“Polymeric Nanofibers and Nanofiber webs: A New Class of Nonwovens”, International Nonwovens Technical Conference Conference (Joint INDA-TAPPI Conference), 2002.
13.
LannuttiL., RenekerD., MaT., TomaskoD., and FarsonD.“Electrospinning for tissue engineering scaffolds”, Materials Science and Engineering C, 27(3), 504–509, 2007.
14.
SupapholP., Mit-uppathamC., and NithitanakulM.“Ultrafine Electrospun Polyamide-6 Fibers: Effects of Solvent System and Emitting Electrode Polarity on Morphology and Average Fiber Diameter”, Macromolecular Materials and Engineering, 290(9), 933–942, 2005.
15.
KenawyER., LaymanJM., WatkinsJR., BowlinGL., MatthewsJA., SimpsonDG., and WnekaGE. “Electrospinning of poly (ethylene-co-vinyl alcohol) fibers”, Biomaterials, 24(6), 907–913, 2003.
16.
FilatovY., BudykaA., and KirichenkoV.“Electrospinning of Micro- and Nanofibers: Fundamentals in Separation and Filtration Processes”, Begell House Publishers, USA, 2007.
17.
TripatanasuwanS., ZhongZ., and RenekerDH. “Effect of evaporation and solidification of the charged jet in electrospinning of poly(ethylene oxide) aqueous solution”, Polymer, 48(19), 5742–5746, 2007.
18.
De VriezeS., Van CampT., NelvigA., HagstromB., WestbroekP., and De ClerckK.“The effect of temperature and humidity on electrospinning”, Journal of Materials Science, 44(5), 1357–1362, 2009.
