Synthesis of Highly Conductive Electrospun Recycled Polyethylene Terephthalate Nanofibers Using the Electroless Deposition Method

Plastic bottles are generally recycled by remolding them into numerous products. In this study, waste from plastic bottles was used to fabricate recycled polyethylene terephthalate (r-PET) nanofibers via the electrospinning technique, and high-performance conductive polyethylene terephthalate nanofibers (r-PET nanofibers) were prepared followed by copper deposition using the electroless deposition (ELD) method. Firstly, the electrospun r-PET nanofibers were chemically modified with silane molecules and polymerized with 2-(methacryloyloxy) ethyl trimethylammonium chloride (METAC) solution. Finally, the copper deposition was achieved on the surface of chemically modified r-PET nanofibers by simple chemical/ion attraction. The water contact angle of r-PET nanofibers, chemically modified r-PET nanofibers, and copper deposited nanofibers were 140 degrees, 80 degrees, and 138 degrees, respectively. The r-PET nanofibers retained their fibrous morphology after copper deposition, and EDX results confirmed the presence of copper on the surface of r-PET nanofibers. XPS was performed to analyze chemical changes before and after copper deposition on r-PET nanofibers. The successful deposition of copper one r-PET nanofibers showed an excellent electrical resistance of 0.1 ohms/cm and good mechanical strength according to ASTM D-638.

Automated summary

Recycled polyethylene terephthalate (r-PET) nanofibers were successfully fabricated using waste plastic bottles and copper was deposited on the surface to create high-performance conductive nanofibers with excellent electrical resistance and good mechanical strength.