Electrospinning Academic News

Preparation and characterization of PVDF/Starch nanocomposite nanofibers using electrospinning method 2021-03-17

In this study, poly (vinylidene fluoride) PVDF/Starch nanofibers with a great potential for tissue engineering applications have been investigated. The electrospun nanofibers were formed by the electrospinning of the PVDF/Starch solutions in various ratios of PVDF to Starch. Characterizations of PVDF/Starch nanofiber were performed using rheometric mechanical spectroscopy (RMS), field emission scanning electron microscope (FE-SEM) and tensile test. The results showed that the addition of more Starch into the PVDF solution increased the viscosity of the prepared PVDF/Starch solutions. In addition, the mechanical properties of PVDF enhanced in the presence of Starch due to the higher mechanical properties of Starch chains. Also, addition of Starch into PVDF matrix increased the elongation at break from 58 to 8 mm.

In-situ growth of graphene on carbon nanofiber from lignin 2021-03-17

Design and synthesis of heterostructured carbon nanofibers is significant for applications in the field of optoelectronics, conductors and catalytic devices. Although lignin has been widely used as building blocks for fabricating nanofibers, it is still very challenging to synthesize conducting heterostructured carbon nanofibers without using additional catalysts. Herein, we first in-situ grew graphene grafted carbon nanofibers (G/CNFs) using calcium lignin sulfonate as starting materials without addition of catalysts. Through the electrospinning, pyrolysis and washing procedure, the as-spun nanofibers are converted into the flexible G/CNFs films. The in-situ formed CaS nanoparticles serve as catalysts for the growth of graphene on the surface of the CNFs, when the carbonization temperature is over 1100 °C. The as-prepared G/CNFs films exhibit superior electronic conductivity of 2377.9 S m−1, which is comparable to the values reported in the literature. As a proof-of-concept, the as-fa

Electrospinning technology was used to stabilize sodium ion storage 2021-03-17

Iron/manganese‐based layered transition metal oxides have risen to prominence as prospective cathodes for sodium‐ion batteries (SIBs) owing to their abundant resources and high theoretical specific capacities, yet they still suffer from rapid capacity fading. Herein, a dual‐strategy is developed to boost the Na‐storage performance of the Fe/Mn‐based layered oxide cathode by copper (Cu) doping and nanoengineering. The P2‐Na0.76Cu0.22Fe0.30Mn0.48O2 cathode material synthesized by electrospinning exhibits the pearl necklace‐like hierarchical nanostructures assembled by nanograins with sizes of 50–150 nm. The synergistic effects of Cu doping and nanotechnology enable high Na+ coefficients and low ionic migration energy barrier, as well as highly reversible structure evolution and Cu/Fe/Mn valence variation upon repeated sodium insertion/extraction; thus, the P2‐Na0.76Cu0.22Fe0.30Mn0.48O2 nano‐necklaces yield fabulous rate capability (125.4 mA h g−1 at 0.1 C with 56.5 mA h g−1 at 20 C) and

Electrochemical performance of electrospun lotus–root–structure porous multichannel carbon nanotubes for lithium–sulfur battery applications 2021-03-17

Lotus–root–structure porous multichannel carbon nanotubes with sidewalls are used in sulfur/carbon (P–MCNT) composites as a sulfur carrier for Li–sulfur (LiS) batteries. P–MCNT is prepared by a simple electrospinning method using coaxial needles, followed by heat treatment and etching. P–MCNT developed multichannel inner pores of different sizes in an axial direction when different amounts of polymethyl methacrylate (PMMA) were added. The sidewall–holes are prepared by adding SiO2 to the electrospinning solution followed by etching. As the porosity increases, the sulfur content reaches a maximum of 78 wt%. The sulfur/P–MCNT composite for LiS batteries exhibits superior performance with a high initial discharge capacity of 1315 mAh g−1 and maintained satisfactory cyclability. This superior performance was ascribed to the morphology of the P–MCNT, which both captured sulfur and restricted its loss during the charge–discharge process. In addition, the introduction of more pores into the c

Cobalt sulfide embedded carbon nanofibers as a self-supporting template to improve lithium ion battery performances 2021-03-17

Metal sulfides are getting increasing attention as cathodic materials in lithium-ion batteries due to their high theoretical capacities. However, the volume expansion and rapid decay of capacity are two main factors during charge and discharge that restricts the applicability of these electrodes. Herein, we reported a strategy to obtain cobalt sulfide (Co1-xS)-carbon nanofibers (CNFs) using an electrospinning technique combined with a solvothermal method to increase the capacity of cobalt sulfide and alleviate the volume expansion. Results showed that the as-obtained flexible self-supporting Co1-xS-CNFs electrode promotes the electron transfer and mechanical stability. Moreover, it was shown that Co1-xS was embedded in CNFs, which improved the electrical conductivity of the composite and alleviated the volume expansion caused by charging and discharging. The synergistic effect from the enhanced electrical conductivity of CNFs and high capacity of the Co1-xS exhibited a high specific di

Synthesis of PVDF/SiO2 nanofiber membrane using electrospinning method as a Li-ion battery separator 2021-03-17

This work reported synthesis of PVDF/SiO2 (Polyvinilidene fluoride/Silica) nanofiber membrane by electrospinning method that was used as a separator in li-ion battery. The effect of the SiO2 nanoparticle addition to the PVDF nanofiber membrane to improve membrane characteristics which include porosity, temperature stability, mechanical strength and the stability of battery capacity were systematically investigated. The electrospinning parameter was adjusted at a voltage of 15 kV, the flow rate of 1,5 ml/hour, the distance between needle to collector 17 cm and spinning time for 1 h. The immersion of PVDF membrane in colloid SiO2 nanoparticles was carried out for 1 h. Nanofiber membrane was characterized by SEM (Scanning Electron Microscope), n-butanol intrusion, the dimensional changes before and after heat treatment, stress–strain mechanical measurements with autograph and battery analyzer. The PVDF nanofiber membrane has a beaded fiber with an average fiber size was ∼656 nm. The nanop

Fabrication of high surface area ribbon electrodes for use in redox flow batteries via coaxial electrospinning 2021-03-17

A method for the preparation of electrospun with fibers possessing a ribbon-like cross-sectional shape was developed. These materials could prove beneficial as flow-through electrodes, since ribbons provide a higher surface-to-volume ratio compared to fibers, thereby providing higher reactive surface area at a given porosity. Fabrication of these materials was accomplished by electrospinning a coaxial fiber with a polystyrene core and polyacrylonitrile shell, followed by leaching of the core material leading to the collapse of the shell into a flat ribbon. The surviving shell was then carbonized to make an electrically conductive and electrochemically reactive fibrous structure. Analysis by x-ray computed tomography showed that ribbons of approximately 400 nm × 800 nm were produced, and experimental characterization revealed that they did indeed offer higher volumetric surface area than previously reported electrospun cylindrical fiber electrodes. The electrodes were characterized for

Towards stable and high‐capacity anode materials for sodium‐ion batteries by embedding of Sb/Sn nanoparticles into electrospun mesoporous carbon fibers 2021-03-17

Antimony and tin are promising anode materials for sodium‐ion batteries due to their high theoretical sodium storage capacities. However, significant volume change during cycling limits their long‐term stability and rate performance. Composite engineering can minimize this problem. A versatile method for the synthesis of Sb nanoparticles inside the mesopores of carbon fibers prepared through electrospinning and subsequent carbothermal reduction is presented in this work. The mesopore architecture can host up to 61 wt% of Sb nanoparticles and buffer the volume changes during cycling. Smaller pores in the carbon provide the pathways for reversible insertion/extraction of sodium. This binder‐free material provides high rate capability and a long‐term cycling performance when used as an anode in half‐cells. When cycled at 0.5 A g−1, the composite shows an initial capacity of 520 mA h g−1 with 507 mA h g−1 remaining after 500 cycles. Even at a high current density of 20 A g−1, a capacity of

Electrospinning Techniques: Electrospinning‐Based Strategies for Battery Materials (Adv. Energy Mater. 2/2021) 2021-03-17

In article number 2000845 Yuming Chen, Ziqiang Wang, Qinghua Chen, Jing Yang, Ju Li, Yiu‐Wing Mai and co‐workers review electrospinning‐based strategies for battery materials. The combination of electrospinning techniques with other materials processing techniques is a powerful synthesis strategy that can tailor the structural and compositional features of electrode materials for energy storage applications. The synthesized nanomaterials can also work as nanoreactors for in situ transmission electron microscopy characterization, that enables an understanding of the mechanisms of the materials synthesis process and electrochemical reaction behavior.

Enhanced Performance of High Energy Density Lithium Metal Battery with PVDF-HFP/LAGP Composite Separator 2021-03-17

The development of high energy density lithium ion batteries puts forward requirements for separators. In this article, poly(vinylidenefluoride-hexafluoropropylene)/Li1.5Al0.5Ge1.5(PO4)3 composite membrane (PL) has been fabricated by electrospinning and with use of the dip-coating method as the separator of the lithium ion battery. With reference to the physical properties, PL has better mechanical strength than does its base membrane electrospun poly(vinylidene fluoride-hexafluoropropylene) (PVDF-HFP), and thermal stability and electrolyte uptake (215%) higher than those of the PP separator; with reference to the electrochemistry parameters, PL has an ionic conductivity of up to 3.18 mS cm–1 at RT and a wide electrochemical window of 5.3 V (vs Li+/Li). The NCM811||Li battery that uses the PL separator exhibits a longer cycle life (144.7 mAh g–1 after 500 cycles at 0.2 C), a lower interfacial resistance change (71.19 Ω), and a higher rate capability as compared to the batteries that us

Fabrication of Carbon Nanofibers Decorated with Various Kinds of Metal Oxides for Battery Applications 2021-03-17

Carbon nanofibers decorated with various metal oxide nanoparticles were fabricated by combining an electrospinning technique of bicomponent polymer mixture and a sol-gel reaction and subsequent carbonization process. Electrospun polymer nanofibers consisting of polyacrylonitrile (PAN) and poly(vinyl pyrrolidone) (PVP) with controllable diameters were fabricated with PAN/PVP core/shell types via phase-separation due to the immiscibility between two polymers. The electrospun nanofibers served as supporting materials with binding sites of PVP to incorporate titanium oxide precursor. Subsequently, the carbonization of the fibers led to the formation of carbon nanofibers@TiO2 for energy application, in which rutile TiO2 nanoparticles were decorated on the surface of carbon nanofiber. Especially, this TiO2 decorated carbon nanofiber electrode exhibited excellent electrochemical property in lithium-ion batteries (≈600 mA h g−1 at C/5 rate for 100 cycles). Furthermore, the carbon nanofibers we

Sesamol incorporated cellulose acetate-zein composite nanofiber membrane: An efficient strategy to accelerate diabetic wound healing 2021-03-16

Recently, the function of nanofiber membranes prepared from electrospinning in accelerating wound healing has attracted wide attention. In this study, novel nanofiber membranes consisted of cellulose acetate (CA) and zein were fabricated to provide efficient delivery vehicles for sesamol, and then the effect of sesamol-loaded composite nanofiber membranes on the wound healing of diabetic mice was studied. It was found the critical concentration of CA was between 15% and 25% (w/v), and the most suitable concentration of stabilizing fibers was 22.5%. When the CA/zein ratio was 12:8, the fiber obtained small diameter and uniform distribution, stable intermolecular structure, low infiltration speed and high stability in water. The composite nanofiber membrane with high-dose sesamol (5% of total polymer concentration, w/w) promoted formation of myofibroblasts by enhancing TGF-β signaling pathway transduction, and promoted keratinocyte growth by inhibiting chronic inflammation in wounds, thu

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