Journal
MATERIALS TODAY CHEMISTRY
Volume 20, Issue -, Pages -Publisher
ELSEVIER SCI LTD
DOI: 10.1016/j.mtchem.2020.100416
Keywords
Electrospinning; Polymer; Water treatment; Polyethylene oxide; Biocompatibility; Daphnia magna
Funding
- National Research Foundation [JINR181129398]
- Flerov Laboratory, Joint Institute for Nuclear Research, Environmental and Nanosciences Group
- University of the Western Cape, South Africa
- Cape Peninsula University of Technology Postgraduate Research Scholarship
Ask authors/readers for more resources
This study focused on the development of stable nanofiber membranes using electrospinning of polymer composites on titanium-coated PET track-etched membranes. The membranes showed stability in various pH conditions, as demonstrated by solubility tests, and were found to be biocompatible based on tests with freshwater crustaceans. The composite membranes have potential applications in diverse areas such as dual adsorption and filtration systems in water treatment.
The development of next-generation adsorption, separation, and filtration materials is growing with an increased research focus on polymer composites. In this study, a novel blend of chitosan (CS) and polyethylene oxide (PEO) nanofiber mats was electrospun on titanium (Ti)-coated polyethylene terephthalate (PET) track-etched membranes (TMs) with after-treatment by glutaraldehyde in the vapor phase for enhancing the nanofiber stability by crosslinking. The prepared composite, titanium-coated track-etched nanofiber membrane (TTM-CPnf) was characterized by Fourier transform infra-red (FTIR), water contact angle, and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) analyses. Smooth and uniform CS nano fibers with an average fiber diameter of 156.55 nm were produced from a 70/30 CS/PEO blend solution prepared from 92 wt. % acetic acid and electrospun at 15 cm needle to collector distance with 0.5 mL/h flow rate and an applied voltage of 30 kV on the TTM-CPnf. Short (15 min) and long (72 h)-term solubility tests showed that after 3 h, crosslinked nanofibers were stable in acidic (pH = 3), basic (pH = 13), and neutral (pH = 7) solutions. The crosslinked TTM-CPnf material was biocompatible based on the low mortality of freshwater crustaceans Daphnia magna. The composite membranes comprised of electrospun nanofiber and TMs proved to be biocompatible and may thus be suitable for diverse applications such as dual adsorptionefiltration systems in water treatment. (c) 2020 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
Authors
I am an author on this paper
Click your name to claim this paper and add it to your profile.
Reviews
Recommended
No Data Available