Superhydrophobicity of cellulose triacetate fibrous mats produced by electrospinning and plasma treatment

Nano/micro-fibrous cellulose triacetate (CTA) mats were prepared by electrospinning a fixed concentration of CTA with different methylene chloride (MC)/ethanol (EtOH) ratios and with various concentrations of CIA at a fixed MC/EtOH 80/20 (v/v) ratio. All of the electrospun CTA mats had a high water contact angle (WCA) compared to the CTA cast film. At a solvent composition of 80/20 (v/v) and 5 wt.% CTA concentration, the CTA mat without plasma treatment had good surface roughness and electrospinning processability, and its WCA was 142 degrees. To further improve its hydrophobicity, the CTA fibrous mat electrospun from the 5 wt.% solution of CTA was treated with a CF4 plasma for various times. Superhydrophobicity could be obtained after the CF4 plasma treatment. The WCA of the CTA mat reached as high as 153 degrees after plasma treatment for 60 s. (C) 2008 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.