Electrospining Machine: Effect of Electrostatic Spinning Parameters on the Morphology of Electrostatically Spun Poly Nanofiber Membrane and Its Application as a Potential Air Filtration Material

Background

Oral and maxillofacial bone defects due to disease and trauma are a global concern due to their high morbidity, negative impact on quality of life and heavy economic burden. Implantation of bone graft materials is the most commonly used treatment for bone defects. However, non-biodegradable bone graft materials can lead to incomplete bone regeneration or even complete rejection by the organism due to the occupation of osteogenic space. Therefore, the development of degradable bone grafts has become an important direction for the repair of bone defects.

The main point of this paper

Progress in the study of PHAs:

PHAs have attracted attention for their biodegradability and biocompatibility, especially in drug delivery materials

Properties and applications of PHBV:

PHBV is an environmentally friendly thermoplastic polyester with good oxygen permeability, mechanical strength and non-toxicity, and its final degradation product is a normal component of human blood

PHBV in biomedical applications:

PHBV has been used in a wide range of in vitro and in vivo studies, including sutures, prosthetic devices, drug delivery systems and surgical applications

Potential applications of PHBV in air filtration:

PHBV has a high degree of crystallinity, giving it high mechanical strength and excellent biocompatibility, making it suitable for use as a biodegradable air filter and personal protective equipment material

Advantages of electrospinning technology:

The electrospinning technology allows the production of nanofibres using a wide range of polymers for air filtration purposes with high filtration efficiency

Optimisation of PHBV Nanofiber Membrane:

The effect of electrospinning parameters on the morphology of PHBV fibres was investigated and process parameters were optimised to produce smooth, bead-free fibres with micron-sized diameters

Filtration Efficiency of PHBV Nanofiber Membrane:

The optimised electrospun PHBV fibre membrane has a particle filtration efficiency (PFE) of over 98% at standard atmospheric pressure.

Optimisation of the electrospinning process for the production of PHA-based nanofibre membranes: a study of poly(3-hydroxybutyric acid-3-hydroxyvaleric acid) for air filtration applications

Environmental problems and demand for environmentally friendly materials:

Non-biodegradable materials cause serious damage to the ecological environment, and people are increasingly inclined to use environmentally friendly materials to replace traditional chemical materials.

Concern for PHAs:

Polyhydroxyalkanoates (PHAs) have attracted attention for their biodegradability and biocompatibility, but applications are limited by high production costs and insufficient research.

PHBV Electrospinning Study:

This project investigated the optimal electrospinning parameters for the production of PHA-based fibre membranes for air filtration, specifically poly (3-hydroxybutyrate-3-hydroxyvalerate) (PHBV).

Process parameter optimisation:

Process parameters such as applied electric field, solution flow rate, inner diameter of hollow needles and polymer concentration were optimised to prepare smooth, bead-free fibres with micron-sized diameters.

Morphological Observation of Electrospun PHBV Nanofiber Membrane:

The morphology of electrospun PHBV Nanofiber Membrane was observed using scanning electron microscope (SEM).

Chemical characterisation and phase exploration:

Exploration of chemical features and phases of electrospun PHBV Electrospun Nanofibers using Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FTIR) and Raman Spectroscopy.

Summarize

This paper presents a study of the effect of key parameters (applied voltage, flow rate, needle inner diameter and polymer concentration) on the surface microstructure. The surface bead string structure was associated with low weight percentage of PHBV in solution, high flow rate and low applied voltage. However, the optimised parameters for smooth and well-defined electrospun fibre membranes were: flow rate of 0.5-1 mL/h, PHB concentration of 12 wt.%, needle inner diameter of 0.21 mm, collection distance of 16 cm and applied voltage of 20 kV.

The applied voltage, solution flow rate and capillary inner diameter parameters had a significant effect on the surface structure. However, the solution concentration parameter plays a decisive role in the formation of fibre microstructure. The PHBV electrospun substrate was used as a potential filtration membrane compared to commercial air filtration membranes.