Porous carbon nanofibers were prepared by electrospinning blend solutions of polybenzimidazole/poly-L-lactic acid (PBI/PLLA) and carbonization. During thermal treatment, PLLA was decomposed, resulting in the creation of pores in the carbon nanofibers. From SEM images, it is shown that carbon nanofibers had diameters in the range of 100-200 nm. The conversion of PBI to carbon was confirmed by Raman spectroscopy, and the surface area and pore volume of carbon nanofibers were determined using nitrogen adsorption/desorption analyses. To investigate electrochemical performances, coin-type cells were assembled using free-standing carbon nanofiber electrodes and ionic liquid electrolyte. cyclic voltammetry studies show that the PBI/PLLA-derived porous carbon nanofiber electrodes have higher capacitance due to lower electrochemical impedance compared to carbon nanofiber electrode from PBI only. These porous carbon nanofibers were activated using ammonia for further porosity improvement and annealed to remove the surface functional groups to better match the polarity of electrode and electrolyte. Ragone plots, correlating energy density with power density calculated from galvanostatic charge-discharge curves, reveal that activation/annealing further improves energy and power densities.
The foam dressing material continuously absorbs the exudate of the wound area and maintains moisture environment, so that there is a weak point of the bacterial growth. Therefore, antimicrobial property is one of the important factors in the development of moisture environment foam dressing. The purpose of this study is to evaluate the effectiveness of wound dressing after manufacturing antimicrobial foam dressing materials containing asiatic acid, madecassic acid, and aciaticoside of the Centella asiatica. In order to fabricate superior absorbent layer compared to conventional polyurethane foam dressings, the optimum mechanical properties, pore morphology, absorbency and absorption rate were established on blending ratio of the foam mixture and the antimicrobial component. The foam containing the active ingredients of the Centella asiatica showed high antimicrobial activity and excellent wound recovery rate in animal model experiments. The polyurethane foam dressing material containing active ingredients of the Centella asiatica is expected to be used as an antimicrobial wound treatment.
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