Production of polyacrylonitrile/boehmite nanofibrous composite tubular structures by opposite‐charge electrospinning with enhanced properties from a low‐concentration polymer solution

Abstract

Polyacrylonitrile (PAN)/boehmite nanofibrous composite tubular structures were fabricated from dilute polymer solutions using an opposite‐charge electrospinning method. The samples were characterized by X‐ray diffraction, Differential scanning calorimetry, scanning electron microscopy, Fourier‐transform infrared spectroscopy, fast Fourier transform, and tensile tests. The presence of boehmite nanoparticles in the electrospun PAN nanofibers prevented bead formation, resulting in uniform fibers with smaller diameters, and improved alignment from low‐concentration PAN polymer solutions. 1 wt% boehmite‐loaded nanofibrous composite tubular structure was selected as the optimal formulation to proceed with the crystallinity and tensile tests, which showed enhanced crystalline properties as well as an abrupt shift in tensile performance. The tensile properties of the nanofiber strongly depended on their crystalline properties. The strong intermolecular forces (hydrogen bonds) between the AlOH groups formed at the surface of boehmite nanoparticles and the polar CN groups along the polymer chains. In addition, the high electrical force between the two tips of the needles in the opposite charge set‐up can contribute to the control of electrical jet deposition instability when using a low‐concentration electrospinning solution, leading to enhanced properties.

Studying the Physical Properties of Non-Woven Polyacrylonitrile Nanofibers after Adding γ-Fe2O3 Nanoparticles .

“…The achievements of current nanofiber technology are one of the most important goals of modern research, which is produced by the electrospinning technique that allows the preparation of non-woven fibrous materials with distinct morphological properties such as fine diameters, high gas permeability [1][2][3][4], small fibrous pore sizes, large surface-to-volume ratio, highly disciplined porosity, and flexibility [5][6][7][8] .…”

An Estimate of the Onset of Beadless Character of Electrospun Nanofibers Using Rheological Characterization

“…However, in some cases an appearance of beads supports an application of nanofibers, as in the case of improving adhesion [ 1 , 2 ]. Bead formation strongly depends on various factors such as voltage [ 9 ], tip-to-collector distance [ 9 ], and additives [ 10 , 11 ]. A choice of solvents also contributes to this phenomenon [ 10 , 12 ].…”

Improvement of insulation properties of glass fiber fabric/epoxy composites modified by polymeric and inorganic fillers

“…In the recent years, studies on nanofibers have been increasing and studies reported on nanofiber web reinforced glass/epoxy composites have mainly been focused on improvement of their mechanical properties. [26][27][28][29][30][31][32][33][34] However, many novel and light weight acoustical and thermal insulating materials have been introduced in recent years and nanofiber-based materials are promising materials for insulation application and other application areas such as energy storage and energy generators. [32,[35][36][37][38][39][40] Na et al [35] studied on the effect of layers of nanofiber webs on regular fiber knitted fabric on sound absorption.…”