Electrospinning: a facile technique for fabricating polymeric nanofibers doped with carbon nanotubes and metallic nanoparticles for sensor applications

Abstract

The increased interest in electrospinning (ES) and its recent applications for fabrication of sensors and biosensors is driven by the development of materials science and nanotechnology. Compared with other fabrication processes, ES is versatile and superior for producing and constructing ordered and complex nanofibrous materials. The introduction of carbon nanotubes (CNTs) and metallic nanoparticles (MNPs) into the electrospun polymeric nanofibers (NFs) extends their potential applications as electrical and electrochemical sensors and biosensors. In this review, we summarize the recent progress using the ES technique to fabricate different polymeric NFs doped with CNTs and various MNPs, as well as their applications for detecting alcohols, H 2 S, H 2 , glucose, H 2 O 2 , and urea. The fabrication, intrinsic fundamentals, and optimization design of the sensors were introduced and discussed in detail. In addition, the improvements and challenges of ES techniques were mentioned. It is expected that this review will promote development in the ES field and guide studies to create nanofibrous hybrid materials as novel sensors and biosensors.

Preparation and Characterization of Highly Aligned Carbon Nanotubes/Polyacrylonitrile Composite Nanofibers

“…Carbon nanotubes (CNTs), which have excellent mechanical, physical, and chemical properties-such as good stiffness, high strength, and electrical conductivity-have attracted a great deal of scientific interests in the area of appliances, communication, and biomedical related applications [4][5][6][7][8]. However, a number of challenges must be overcome before producing a homogeneous dispersion of CNTs in a polymer matrix, including processing methods for fabricating CNTs/polymer composites.…”

Facile fabrication of coaxial-cable like Mn 2 O 3 nanofiber by electrospinning: Application as electrode material for supercapacitor

“…For example, hydrothermal method [3] , self-assembly method [4] , template method [5] and electrospinning [6,7] . Among these methods, electrospinning technique is believed to be a convenient, cost-effective and versatile method for preparing nanofibers, such as polymeric [8,9] , inorganic [10][11][12] and metallic nanofibers [13] with various structures and morphologies. It is a process that uses an electric field to control the formation of nanofibers [14] .…”

Ultrasensitive electrospun fluorescent nanofibrous membrane for rapid visual colorimetric detection of H2O2

“…Recent studies demonstrated electrospun nanofibers as an excellent matrix for protecting and enhancing the sensing performance of fluorescent gold nanoclusters and metallic nanoparticles [22][23][24][25][26]. The polysulfone fiber-based membranes received much attention in the field ranging from artificial kidneys for blood purification to water treatment and food processing, owing to their good permeability, mechanical, thermal, and biocompatible properties [27,28].…”