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Fiber Spinning Technologies and Functional Polymer Fiber Development

A special issue of Polymers (ISSN 2073-4360). This special issue belongs to the section "Polymer Fibers".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 15 October 2025 | Viewed by 2292

Special Issue Editors


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Guest Editor
Department of Material Science and Technology, Audi Hungaria Faculty of Vehicle Engineering, Széchenyi István University, H-9026 Győr, Hungary
Interests: biomechanics; biopolymers; tribology; multibody dynamics
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Guest Editor
Department of Mechanical Engineering, Faculty of Technical and Human Sciences, Sapientia Hungarian University of Transylvania, 540485 Târgu-Mureş, Romania
Interests: thermoplastic elastomers; polymers; fibers; electrospinning; centrifugal spinning; polymer recycling; drug delivery; filtration; oil-water separation; 3D printing
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Polymeric and natural fibers have gained significant attention due to their unique properties: nano- and micrometer dimensions, high surface-to-volume ratio, high porosity, flexibility, and hallow or porous fiber structures. Electrospinning is the most popular fiber production technique due to its accessibility, modular setup, and precise control over fiber morphology through process parameters. The shortcomings of electrospinning, more specifically the low production rate and the use of electric field for fiber generation, have been addressed by the development of various methods in recent years (needleless electrospinning, centrifugal spinning, etc.)

This Special Issue is devoted to exploring the latest advancements in fiber production and their applications in both fundamental research and advanced applications. Authors are invited to submit research articles or review papers focusing on the development, scale-up, characterization, and applications of fibers.

Dr. Gusztáv Fekete
Dr. Attila Levente Gergely
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Polymers is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2700 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • fibers
  • needleless electrospinning
  • centrifugal spinning
  • blow spinning
  • solution and melt spinning
  • polymers
  • natural fibers
  • drug delivery
  • filtration
  • energy harvesting
  • scaffolds

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Published Papers (3 papers)

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Research

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12 pages, 3253 KiB  
Article
Polymer Concentration-Driven Morphological and Mechanical Variations in Flash-Spun High-Density Polyethylene Fibers
by Jae-Hyung Wee, Younghwan Bae, Nam Pil Cho, Minsung Kang, In-Woo Nam, Hyunchul Ahn, Donghwa Ryu, Seung Goo Lee, Tae Hee Han and Sang Young Yeo
Polymers 2025, 17(7), 965; https://doi.org/10.3390/polym17070965 - 1 Apr 2025
Viewed by 306
Abstract
Flash-spun filaments (FSFs) made from high-density polyethylene (HDPE) are widely used in industrial nonwovens due to their unique morphology and mechanical robustness. In this study, we investigated the effect of polymer concentration (5–15 wt%) on FSF formation using a laboratory-scale flash-spinning system operating [...] Read more.
Flash-spun filaments (FSFs) made from high-density polyethylene (HDPE) are widely used in industrial nonwovens due to their unique morphology and mechanical robustness. In this study, we investigated the effect of polymer concentration (5–15 wt%) on FSF formation using a laboratory-scale flash-spinning system operating under supercritical conditions. Morphological, mechanical, and crystallographic analyses were conducted to understand the underlying mechanisms. As polymer concentration increased, filament thickness, crystallinity, and strength improved, with optimal performance observed at 12 wt%, where the modulus peaked at 270.77 cN/tex and elongation was minimized. At 15 wt%, mechanical properties declined due to hindered solvent evaporation, which disrupted polymer alignment and reduced filament orientation. X-ray diffraction analysis revealed small crystal sizes (6.4–6.9 nm) across all samples, suggesting that rapid phase separation limited crystal growth. This indicates that polymer concentration mainly affects the number of crystalline domains rather than their size. The results demonstrate that solvent evaporation dynamics and phase separation behavior play critical roles in determining FSF structure and performance. Precise control of polymer concentration is therefore essential to optimize fiber morphology, orientation, and mechanical stability, providing valuable insights for the design of high-performance flash-spun nonwovens in industrial applications. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Fiber Spinning Technologies and Functional Polymer Fiber Development)
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20 pages, 8870 KiB  
Article
Oil Sorption Properties of Centrifugally Spun Polyisobutylene-Based Thermoplastic Elastomer Microfibers
by József Kántor, Gusztáv Fekete and Attila Levente Gergely
Polymers 2024, 16(18), 2624; https://doi.org/10.3390/polym16182624 - 17 Sep 2024
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1058
Abstract
Fiber-based sorbent materials are an essential part of containing oil spills, thus preventing ecological damage. Poly(styrene-b-isobutylene-b-styrene) thermoplastic elastomer fibers were successfully produced by centrifugal spinning. Scanning electron microscopy revealed that the fibers were bead free and smooth-surfaced, with an [...] Read more.
Fiber-based sorbent materials are an essential part of containing oil spills, thus preventing ecological damage. Poly(styrene-b-isobutylene-b-styrene) thermoplastic elastomer fibers were successfully produced by centrifugal spinning. Scanning electron microscopy revealed that the fibers were bead free and smooth-surfaced, with an average fiber diameter of 5.9 ± 2.3 μm. Contact angle measurements proved the highly hydrophobic (water contact angle of 126.8 ± 6.4°) and highly oleophilic nature of the fiber mat. The sorption and retention capacities of the fiber mat were tested for various oils and benchmarked against polypropylene as the industry standard and polystyrene, which is widely used in the literature. The oil uptake of the fiber mat showed a strong correlation with the viscosity of the oil, resulting in sorption capacities of 10.1 ± 0.8 g/g for sunflower oil, 19.9 ± 2.1 g/g for motor oil, and 23.8 ± 1.8 g/g for gear oil. Oil–water separation tests were also conducted, resulting in ~100% oil removal. The thermoplastic elastomer fiber mat outperformed the industry standard; however, the polystyrene fiber mat demonstrated the best oil sorption performance. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Fiber Spinning Technologies and Functional Polymer Fiber Development)
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Review

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27 pages, 6049 KiB  
Review
Inkjet Printing Is a Promising Method of Dyeing Polymer Textile Materials
by Andrey A. Vodyashkin, Mstislav O. Makeev and Pavel A. Mikhalev
Polymers 2025, 17(6), 756; https://doi.org/10.3390/polym17060756 - 13 Mar 2025
Viewed by 591
Abstract
Inkjet printing is a universal method of direct application and application of various substances to the surface of materials. This technology is gaining popularity in various fields, from textile printing to microelectronics and biomedicine. In the textile industry, inkjet printing has been widely [...] Read more.
Inkjet printing is a universal method of direct application and application of various substances to the surface of materials. This technology is gaining popularity in various fields, from textile printing to microelectronics and biomedicine. In the textile industry, inkjet printing has been widely used for many years. In our approach, we systematized the main approaches to maintaining the quality of inkjet printing on various components of materials. We reported and analyzed methods for optimizing the rheological properties of paint to improve the colorimetric characteristics and color fastness on various fabrics. The paper presents surface tension and viscosity regulators, with the help of which the colorimetric indicators of the image on textiles can be improved. For each type of textile, individual modifiers were demonstrated that could most effectively improve the quality of the pattern. Particular attention was paid to the methods of modifying the surface of products, including both physical and chemical approaches. This section discusses an effective method of plasma treatment, which allows you to control the surface free energy for textile polymer materials. By controlling the surface tension of inkjet paints and the surface energy of the material, it is possible to achieve maximum adhesion, thereby significantly increasing the amount of paint per unit area of textile. Additionally, for similar purposes, the principles of chemical modification of the surface with various substances were considered. These methods enable control over the wettability of ink and adhesion to textiles of consistent composition. Additionally, we highlight the potential of thin, optically transparent polymer coatings as a promising strategy to enhance the efficiency of dyeing textile materials. The textile industry is rapidly developing, and the functionality of clothing is improving every year. Inkjet printing methods optimized for maximum accuracy and quality can serve as a significant alternative for applying images. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Fiber Spinning Technologies and Functional Polymer Fiber Development)
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