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Article

Influence of the PAN:PEO Ratio on the Morphology of Needleless Electrospun Nanofiber Mats Before and After Carbonization

by
Nonsikelelo Sheron Mpofu
1,2,
Yusuf Topuz
1,
Elzbieta Stepula
1,
Uwe Güth
3,
Timo Grothe
1,
Jan Lukas Storck
1,
Martin Wortmann
1,
Boris Mahltig
4 and
Andrea Ehrmann
1,*
1
Faculty of Engineering and Mathematics, Bielefeld University of Applied Sciences and Arts, 33619 Bielefeld, Germany
2
School of Engineering, Moi University, Eldoret 30100, Kenya
3
Department of Physical and Biophysical Chemistry (PC III), Faculty of Chemistry, Bielefeld University, 33615 Bielefeld, Germany
4
Faculty of Textile and Clothing Technology, Niederrhein University of Applied Sciences, 41065 Mönchengladbach, Germany
*
Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.
Fibers 2024, 12(11), 97; https://doi.org/10.3390/fib12110097
Submission received: 30 August 2024 / Revised: 11 October 2024 / Accepted: 5 November 2024 / Published: 8 November 2024
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Electrospinning Nanofibers)
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Abstract

Nanofiber mats with a high surface-to-volume ratio can be prepared by electrospinning. The Porosity is sometimes reported to be tunable by blending different materials, e.g., water-soluble poly(ethylene oxide) (PEO) with not water-soluble poly(acrylonitrile) (PAN). Here, nanofiber mats were electrospun from different PAN:PEO ratios, using a wire-based electrospinning machine “Nanospider Lab”. Investigations of the as-spun nanofiber mats as well as of membranes after washing off the water-soluble PEO by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) revealed severe differences in the nanofiber mat morphologies, such as varying fiber diameters and especially non-fibrous areas in the carbonized nanofiber mats, depending on the amount of PEO in the nanofiber mat as well as the molecular weight of the PEO. Similarly, the ratio and molecular weight of PEO influenced the results of stabilization and carbonization. This paper discusses the possibility of tailoring nanofiber porosity for the potential use of PAN nanofiber mats in tissue engineering, filtration, and other applications.
Keywords: porosity; stabilization; carbonization; polymer blend; nanofiber mat; nanofibrous membrane porosity; stabilization; carbonization; polymer blend; nanofiber mat; nanofibrous membrane

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MDPI and ACS Style

Mpofu, N.S.; Topuz, Y.; Stepula, E.; Güth, U.; Grothe, T.; Storck, J.L.; Wortmann, M.; Mahltig, B.; Ehrmann, A. Influence of the PAN:PEO Ratio on the Morphology of Needleless Electrospun Nanofiber Mats Before and After Carbonization. Fibers 2024, 12, 97. https://doi.org/10.3390/fib12110097

AMA Style

Mpofu NS, Topuz Y, Stepula E, Güth U, Grothe T, Storck JL, Wortmann M, Mahltig B, Ehrmann A. Influence of the PAN:PEO Ratio on the Morphology of Needleless Electrospun Nanofiber Mats Before and After Carbonization. Fibers. 2024; 12(11):97. https://doi.org/10.3390/fib12110097

Chicago/Turabian Style

Mpofu, Nonsikelelo Sheron, Yusuf Topuz, Elzbieta Stepula, Uwe Güth, Timo Grothe, Jan Lukas Storck, Martin Wortmann, Boris Mahltig, and Andrea Ehrmann. 2024. "Influence of the PAN:PEO Ratio on the Morphology of Needleless Electrospun Nanofiber Mats Before and After Carbonization" Fibers 12, no. 11: 97. https://doi.org/10.3390/fib12110097

APA Style

Mpofu, N. S., Topuz, Y., Stepula, E., Güth, U., Grothe, T., Storck, J. L., Wortmann, M., Mahltig, B., & Ehrmann, A. (2024). Influence of the PAN:PEO Ratio on the Morphology of Needleless Electrospun Nanofiber Mats Before and After Carbonization. Fibers, 12(11), 97. https://doi.org/10.3390/fib12110097

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