Jao Dave, Beachley Vince Z
Department of Biomedical Engineering, Rowan University, Glassboro, New Jersey 08028, United States.
ACS Macro Lett. 2019 May 21;8(5):588-595. doi: 10.1021/acsmacrolett.9b00167. Epub 2019 May 3.
This manuscript proposes a continuous and straightforward method for fabricating suspended micro- and nanodiameter polymer fibers using an automated single-step drawing system. Termed track spinning, the system is based on a simple manual fiber drawing process that is automated by using two oppositely rotating tracks. Fibers are continuously spun by direct contact of polymer solution coated tracks followed by mechanical drawing as the distance between the tracks increases. The device can draw single or multifilament arrays of micro- and nanofibers from many kinds of polymers and solvent combinations. To demonstrate, fibers were pulled from polymer solutions containing polyvinyl acetate (PVAc) and polyurethane (PU). Fiber morphology was smooth and uniform, and the diameter was sensitive to draw length and polymer solution/melt properties. Polymer nanofibers with diameters as small as 450 nm and length of 255 mm were produced. The track spinning method is able to form fibers from high viscosity solutions and melts that are not compatible with some other nanofiber fabrication methods. Further, the setup is simple and inexpensive to implement and nozzleless and does not require an electric field or high-velocity jets, and the tracks can be widened and patterned/textured to enhance fiber yield and manufacturing precision.
本手稿提出了一种使用自动化单步拉伸系统制造悬浮微纳直径聚合物纤维的连续且直接的方法。该系统被称为轨道纺丝，它基于一种简单的手动纤维拉伸工艺，通过使用两个反向旋转的轨道实现自动化。聚合物溶液涂覆的轨道直接接触，随着轨道间距离增加进行机械拉伸，从而连续纺出纤维。该装置可以从多种聚合物和溶剂组合中拉出微纤维和纳米纤维的单丝或复丝阵列。为了进行演示，从含有聚醋酸乙烯酯（PVAc）和聚氨酯（PU）的聚合物溶液中拉出了纤维。纤维形态光滑且均匀，直径对拉伸长度以及聚合物溶液/熔体性质敏感。制备出了直径小至450 nm、长度为255 mm的聚合物纳米纤维。轨道纺丝方法能够从一些其他纳米纤维制造方法无法适用的高粘度溶液和熔体中形成纤维。此外，该装置设置简单且实施成本低廉，无喷嘴，不需要电场或高速射流，并且轨道可以加宽并进行图案化/纹理化处理以提高纤维产量和制造精度。
