Fabrication of carbon fibers with nanoporous morphologies from electrospun polyacrylonitrile/poly(L-lactide) blends

Fabrication of an efficient vanadium redox flow battery electrode using a free-standing carbon-loaded electrospun nanofibrous composite

Vanadium redox flow batteries (VRFBs) are considered as promising electrochemical energy storage systems due to their efficiency, flexibility and scalability to meet our needs in renewable energy applications. Unfortunately, the low electrochemical performance of the available carbon-based electrodes hinders their commercial viability. Herein, novel free-standing electrospun nanofibrous carbon-loaded composites with textile-like characteristics have been constructed and employed as efficient electrodes for VRFBs. In this work, polyacrylonitrile-based electrospun nanofibers loaded with different types of carbon black (CB) were electrospun providing a robust free-standing network. Incorporation of CBs (14% and 50% weight ratio) resulted in fibers with rough surface and increased mean diameter. It provided higher BET surface area of 83.8 m² g^-1 for as-spun and 356.7 m² g^-1 for carbonized fibers compared to the commercial carbon felt (0.6 m² g^-1). These loaded CB-fibers also had better thermal stability and showed higher electrochemical activity for VRFBs than a commercial felt electrode.

Chemical and Morphological Transition of Poly(acrylonitrile)/Poly(vinylidene Fluoride) Blend Nanofibers during Oxidative Stabilization and Incipient Carbonization

Thermally stabilized and subsequently carbonized nanofibers are a promising material for many technical applications in fields such as tissue engineering or energy storage. They can be obtained from a variety of different polymer precursors via electrospinning. While some methods have been tested for post-carbonization doping of nanofibers with the desired ingredients, very little is known about carbonization of blend nanofibers from two or more polymeric precursors. In this paper, we report on the preparation, thermal treatment and resulting properties of poly(acrylonitrile) (PAN)/poly(vinylidene fluoride) (PVDF) blend nanofibers produced by wire-based electrospinning of binary polymer solutions. Using a wide variety of spectroscopic, microscopic and thermal characterization methods, the chemical and morphological transition during oxidative stabilization (280 °C) and incipient carbonization (500 °C) was thoroughly investigated. Both PAN and PVDF precursor polymers were detected and analyzed qualitatively and quantitatively during all stages of thermal treatment. Compared to pure PAN nanofibers, the blend nanofibers showed increased fiber diameters, strong reduction of undesired morphological changes during oxidative stabilization and increased conductivity after carbonization.

Cooperative fabrication of ternary nanofibers with remarkable solvent and temperature resistance by electrospinning

PVA/PAA/SiO₂ ternary organic–inorganic composite nanofibrous mats are successfully prepared by a cooperative fabrication via electrospinning. The reaction between PVA, PAA and hydrolytic TEOS are proposed to endow the ternary nanofibers with remarkable solvent and temperature resistance, as well as the great mechanical property.

Designing Energy-Storage Devices from Textile Materials

Research and development in textiles have gone beyond the conventional applications as clothing and furnishing materials; for example, the convergence of textiles, nanotechnologies, and energy science opens up the opportunity to take on one of the major challenges in the 21st century energy. This presentation addresses the development of high-energy lithium-ion batteries using electrospun nanofibers.

Magnetic biodegradable Fe3O4/CS/PVA nanofibrous membranes for bone regeneration

In recent years, interest in magnetic biomimetic scaffolds for tissue engineering has increased considerably. The aim of this study is to develop magnetic biodegradable fibrous materials with potential use in bone regeneration. Magnetic biodegradable Fe(3)O(4)/chitosan (CS)/poly vinyl alcohol (PVA) nanofibrous membranes were achieved by electrospinning with average fiber diameters ranging from 230 to 380 nm and porosity of 83.9-85.1%. The influences of polymer concentration, applied voltage and Fe(3)O(4) nanoparticles loading on the fabrication of nanofibers were investigated. The polymer concentration of 4.5 wt%, applied voltage of 20 kV and Fe(3)O(4) nanoparticles loading of lower than 5 wt% could produce homogeneous, smooth and continuous Fe(3)O(4)/CS/PVA nanofibrous membranes. X-ray diffraction (XRD) data confirmed that the crystalline structure of the Fe(3)O(4), CS and PVA were maintained during electrospinning process. Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR) demonstrated that the Fe(3)O(4) loading up to 5 wt% did not change the functional groups of CS/PVA greatly. Transmission electron microscopy (TEM) showed islets of Fe(3)O(4) nanoparticles evenly distributed in the fibers. Weak ferrimagnetic behaviors of membranes were revealed by vibrating sample magnetometer (VSM) test. Tensile test exhibited Young's modulus of membranes that were gradually enhanced with the increase of Fe(3)O(4) nanoparticles loading, while ultimate tensile stress and ultimate strain were slightly reduced by Fe(3)O(4) nanoparticles loading of 5%. Additionally, MG63 human osteoblast-like cells were seeded on the magnetic nanofibrous membranes to evaluate their bone biocompatibility. Cell growth dynamics according to MTT assay and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) observation exhibited good cell adhesion and proliferation, suggesting that this magnetic biodegradable Fe(3)O(4)/CS/PVA nanofibrous membranes can be one of promising biomaterials for facilitation of osteogenesis.

One-dimensional composite nanomaterials: synthesis by electrospinning and their applications

This Review provides an overview of the synthesis of one-dimensional (1D) composite nanomaterials by electrospinning and their applications. After a brief description of the development of the electrospinning technique, the transformation of an inorganic nanocomponent or polymer into another kind of polymer or inorganic matrix is discussed in terms of the electrospinning process, including the direct-dispersed method, gas-solid reaction, in situ photoreduction, sol-gel method, emulsion electrospinning method, solvent evaporation, and coaxial electrospinning. In addition, various applications of such 1D composite nanomaterials are highlighted in terms of electronic and optical nanodevices, chemical and biological sensors, catalysis and electrocatalysis, superhydrophobic surfaces, environment, energy, and biomedical fields. An increasing number of investigations show that electrospinning has been not only a focus of academic study in the laboratory but is also being applied in a great many technological fields.

Fabrication of porous carbon nanofibers and their application as anode materials for rechargeable lithium-ion batteries

Porous carbon nanofibers were prepared by the electrospinning of a bicomponent polymer solution, followed by thermal treatments under different atmospheres. The surface morphology, thermal properties, and crystalline features of these nanofibers were characterized using various analytic techniques, and it was found that they were formed with turbostratically disordered graphene sheets and had small pores and large surface areas. The unique structure of these porous carbon nanofibers resulted in good electrochemical performance such as high reversible capacity and good cycle stability when they were used as anodes for rechargeable lithium-ion batteries.