Wearable flexible zinc-ion batteries based on electrospinning technology

Flexible wearable batteries are widely used in smartwatches, foldable phones, and fitness trackers due to their thinness and small size. Zinc-based batteries have the advantages of low cost, high safety, and ecofriendliness, which are considered to be the best alternative to flexible lithium-ion batteries(LIBs).Therefore, wearable flexible zinc-ion batteries(FZIBs) have attracted considerable interest as a promising energy storage device. Electrospun nanofibers(ESNFs) have great potential for application in wearable FZIBs due to their low density, high porosity, large specific surface area, and flexibility. Moreover, electrospinning technology can achieve the versatility of nanofibers through structural design and incorporation of other multifunctional materials. This paper reviews a wide range of applications of electrospinning in FZIBs, mainly in terms of cathode, anode, separator, polymer electrolyte, and all-inone flexible batteries. Firstly, the electrospinning device, principles, and influencing parameters are briefly described, showing its positive impact on FZIBs. Subsequently, the energy storage principles and electrode configurations of FZIBs are described, and some of the common problems of the batteries are illustrated, including zinc anode dendrite growth, corrosion, cathode structure collapse, and poor electrical conductivity. This is followed by a comprehensive overview of research progress on the individual components of FZIBs(cathode, anode, separator, and polymer electrolyte) from the perspective of electrostatically spun fiber materials and an in-depth study of all-in-one flexible batteries. Finally, the challenges and future development of FZIBs are individually concluded and look forward. We hope that this work will provide new ideas and avenues for the development of advanced energy technologies and smart wearable systems.

Application of different fiber structures and arrangements by electrospinning in triboelectric nanogenerators

In recent years,nanogenerators(NGs)have attracted wide attention in the energy field,among which triboelectric nanogenerators(TENGs)have shown superior performance.Multiple reports of electrospinning(ES)-based TENGs have been reported,but there is a lack of deep analysis of the designing method from microstructure,limiting the creative of new ES-based TENGs.Most TENGs use polymer materials to achieve corresponding design,which requires structural design of polymer materials.The existing polymer molding design methods include macroscopic molding methods,such as injection,compression,extrusion,calendering,etc.,combined with liquid-solid changes such as soluting and melting;it also includes micro-nano molding technology,such as melt-blown method,coagulation bath method,ES method,and nanoimprint method.In fact,ES technology has good controllability of thickness dimension and rich means of nanoscale structure regulation.At present,these characteristics have not been reviewed.Therefore,in this paper,we combine recent reports with some microstructure regulation functions of ES to establish a more general TENGs design method.Based on the rich microstructure research results in the field of ES,much more new types of TENGs can be designed in the future.

Fabrication of High-Efficiency Polyvinyl Alcohol Nanofiber Membranes for Air Filtration Based on Principle of Stable Electrospinning

A mass flow matching model(MFMM)was established for studying the stable status of solution electrospinning.The study of the solution droplet status at the needle tip focused on various combinations of applied voltages and injection rates to figure out their influence on steadily fabricating polyvinyl alcohol(PVA)nanofibers prepared from PVA spinning solutions with two different mass fractions(10%and 16%).The results revealed that during the stable electrospinning,the influence resulted from the change of the injection rate approximately canceled out the impact brought by adjusting the applied voltage,leading to almost the same morphology as that of the PVA nanofibers.And the mass fraction of PVA in the spinning solution dominated the structure and the diameter distribution of the electrospun nanofibers.Under stable electrospinning conditions,the composite membrane was produced by depositing PVA nanofibers on the polyethylene terephthalate(PET)nonwoven substrate for an air filtration test.Furthermore,the prepared composite membrane exhibited a high air filtration efficiency(99.97%)and a low pressure drop(120 Pa)for 300-500 nm neutralized polystyrene latex(PSL)aerosol particles,demonstrating its potential as an alternative for a variety of commercial applications in air filtration.

Comparative structural and electrochemical properties of mixed P2/O′3-layered sodium nickel manganese oxide prepared by sol-gel and electrospinning methods:Effect of Na-excess content

The effect of Na-excess content in the precursor on the structural and electrochemical performances of sodium nickel manganese oxide(NNMO)prepared by sol-gel and electrospinning methods is investigated in this paper.X-ray diffraction results of the prepared NNMO without adding Na-excess content indicate sodium loss,while the mixed phase of P2/O′3-type layered NNMO presented after adding Na-excess content.Compared with the sol-gel method,the secondary phase of NiO is more suppressed by using the electrospinning method,which is further confirmed by field emission scanning electron microscope images.N_(2) adsorption-desorption isotherms show no remarkably difference in specific surface areas between different preparation methods and Na-excess contents.The analysis of X-ray absorption near edge structure indicates that the oxidation states of Ni and Mn are+2 and+4,respectively.For the electrochemical properties,superior electrochemical performance is observed in the NNMO electrode with a low Na-excess content of 5wt%.The highest specific capacitance is 36.07 F·g^(-1)at0.1 A·g^(-1)in the NNMO electrode prepared by using the sol-gel method.By contrast,the NNMO electrode prepared using the electrospinning method with decreased Na-excess content shows excellent cycling stability of 100%after charge-discharge measurements for 300 cycles.Therefore,controlling the Na excess in the precursor together with the preparation method is important for improving the electrochemical performance of Na-based electrode materials in supercapacitors.

A Rapid-Ab/Desorption and Portable Photothermal MIL- 101(Cr) Nanofibrous Composite Membrane Fabricated by Spray-Electrospinning for Atmosphere Water Harvesting

MIL-101(Cr)is a promising moisture absorbent for solar-driven water harvesting from moisture to tackle the worldwide water shortage issue.However,the MIL-101(Cr)powder suffers from a long ab/desorption cycle due to the crystal aggregation caused by its inherent powder properties.Here,we demonstrate a MIL-101(Cr)nanofibrous composite membrane with a nanofibrous matrix where MIL-101(Cr)is monodisperse in the 3D porous nanofibrous matrix through a simple spray-electrospinning strategy.The continuous porous nanofibrous matrix not only offers sufficient sites for MIL-101(Cr)loading but also provides rapid moisture transport channels,resulting in a super-rapid ab/desorption duration of 50 min(including an absorption process for 40 min and a desorption process for 10 min)and multicycle daily water production of 15.9 L kg^(−1) d^(−1).Besides,the MIL-101(Cr)nanofibrous composite membrane establishes a high solar absorption of 92.8%,and excellent photothermal conversion with the surface temperature of 70.7°C under one-sun irradiation.In addition,the MIL-101(Cr)nanofibrous composite membrane shows excellent potential for practical application due to its flexibility,portability,and use stability.This work provides a new perspective of shortening MOF ab/desorption duration by introducing a porous nanofibrous matrix to improve the specific water production for the solar-driven ab/desorption water harvesting technique.

An energetic nano-fiber composite based on polystyrene and 1,3,5-trinitro-1,3,5-triazinane fabricated via electrospinning technique

Electrospinning is a simple technique used to fabricate polymeric nano-fibrous membranes.These nano-fibers have found a wide range of valuable applications in the biomedical field.However,it has not been utilized with solid high explosives yet.Herein,the electrospinning technique has been used to fabricate polystyrene(PS)/1,3,5-trinitro-1,3,5-triazinane(RDX)composite nanofibers.The governed electrospinning parameters,voltage,distance from the collector,flow rate,mandrel rotating speed,time,and solution concentration,that greatly affect the morphology of the obtained nanofibers were optimized.The fabricated PS/RDX nano-fibers were characterized using scanning electron microscopy(SEM),X-ray diffractometer(XRD),and Fourier Transform Infrared(FTIR)spectroscopy.The impact and friction sensitivities of PS/RDX were also measured.The thermal behavior of the prepared composite and the pure materials were studied by the thermal gravimetric analysis technique(TGA).SEM results proved the fabrication of PS/RDX fibers in the nano-size via electrospinning.FTIR spectroscopy confirmed the existence of the characteristic functional groups of both PS and RDX in the composite nano-fibers.XRD sharp peaks showed the conversion of amorphous PS into crystalline shape via electrospinning and also confirmed the formation of PS/RDX composite.The PS fibers absorbed the heat and increased the onset decomposition of the pure RDX from 181.5 to 200.7℃in the case of PS/RDX fibers.Interestingly,PS/RDX nano-fibers showed the relatively low impact and friction sensitivities of 100 J and 360 N respectively.These results could introduce PS/RDX nanofibrous composite in the field of explosives detection with high levels of safety.

Composite bioabsorbable vascular stents via 3D bio-printing and electrospinning for treating stenotic vessels

A new type of vascular stent is designed for treating stenotic vessels. Aiming at overcoming the shortcomings of existing equipment and technology for preparing a bioabsorbable vascular stent （BVS）, a new method which combines 3D bio-printing and electrospinning to prepare the composite bioabsorbable vascular stent （CBVS） is proposed. The inner layer of the CBVS can be obtained through 3D bio- printing using poly-p-dioxanone （PPDO）. The thin nanofiber film that serves as the outer layer can be built through electrospinning using mixtures of chitosan-PVA （poly （vinyl alcohol））. Tests of mechanical properties show that the stent prepared through 3D bio-printing combined with electrospinning is better than that prepared through 3D bio- printing alone. Cells cultivated on the CBVS adhere and proliferate better due to the natural, biological chitosan in the outer layer. The proposed complex process and method can provide a good basis for preparing a controllable drug-carrying vascular stent. Overall, the CBVS can be a good candidate for treating stenotic vessels.

Characterization of V_2O_5/MoO_3 composite photocatalysts prepared via electrospinning and their photodegradation activity for dimethyl phthalate

Vanadium pentoxide（V2O5）/molybdenum trioxide（MoO 3） composites with different molar ratios of vanadium（V） to molybdenum（Mo） were synthesized via a simple electrospinning technique. The photocatalytic activity of the composites were evaluated by their ability to photodegrade methylene blue and dimethyl phthalate（DMP） under visible-light irradiation. Compared with pure V2O5 and MoO 3,the V2O5/MoO 3 composites showed enhanced visible-light photocatalytic activity because of a V 3d impurity energy level and the formation of heterostructures at the interface between V2O5 and MoO 3. The optimal molar ratio of V to Mo in the V2O5/MoO 3 composites was found to be around 1/2. Furthermore,high-performance liquid chromatographic monitoring revealed that phthalic acid was the main intermediate in the photocatalytic degradation process of DMP.

Direct fabrication of cerium oxide hollow nanofibers by electrospinning

Electrospinning technique was used to fabricate PVP/Ce（NO3）3 composite microfibers. Different morphological CeO2 nanofibers were obtained by calcination of the PVP/Ce（NO3）3 composite microfibers and were characterized by scanning electron microscopy （SEM）, Transmission electron microscopy （TEM）, X-ray diffraction （XRD）, thermal gravimetric and differential thermal analysis （TG-DTA）, and （FTIR）. SEM micrographs indicated that the surface of the composite fibers was smooth and became coarse with the increase of calcination temperatures. The diameters of CeO2 hollow nanofibers （300 nm at 600 ℃ and 600 nm at 800 ℃ ） were smaller than those of PVP/Ce（NO3）3 composite fibers （1-2 um ）. CeO2 hollow nanofibers were obtained at 600 ℃ and CeO2 hollow and porous nanofibers formed by nanoparti- cles were obtained at 800 ℃. The length of the CeO2 hollow nanofibers was greater than 50 um. XRD analysis revealed that the composite microfibers were amorphous in structure and CeO2 nanofibers were cubic in structure with space group O^5H - FM3m when calcination tem- peratures were 600-800 ℃. TG-DTA and FTIR revealed that the formation of CeO2 nanofibers was largely influenced by the calcination temperatures. Possible formation mechanism of CeO2 hollow nanofibers was proposed.

Microporous carbon nanofibers prepared by combining electrospinning and phase separation methods for supercapacitor

Microporous carbon nanofibers (MCNFs) derived from polyacrylonitrile nanofibers were fabricated via electrospinning technology and phase separation in the presence of polyvinylpyrrolidone (PVP). PVP together with a mixed solvent of N, N-Dimethylformamide and dimethyl sulfoxide was used as pore forming agent. The influences of PVP content in casting solution on the structure and electrochemical performance of the MCNFs were also investigated. The highest capacitance of 200 F/g was obtained on a three-electrode system at a scan rate of 0.5 A/g. The good performance was owing to the high specific surface area and the large amount of micro-pores, which enhanced the absorption and the transportation efficiency of electrolyte ion during charge/discharge process. This research indicated that the combination of electrospinning and phase separation technology could be used to fabricate microporous carbon nanofibers as electrode materials for supercapacitors with high specific surface area and outstanding electrochemical performance. (C) 2016 Science Press and Dalian Institute of Chemical Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences. Published by Elsevier B.V. and Science Press. All rights reserved.

Polymer nanofibers prepared by low-voltage near-field electrospinning

Elcctrospiiming is a straightforward method to produce micro/nanoscale fibers from polymer solutions typically using an operating voltage of 10 kV 30 kV and spinning distance of 10 cm 20 cm. In this paper, polyvinyl pyrrolidone （PVP） non-woven nanofibers with diameters of 200 nm 900 nm were prepared by low-voltage near-field electrospinning with a working voltage of less than 2.8 kV and a spinning distance of less than 10 mm. Besides the uniform fibers, beaded-fibers were also fabricated and the formation mechanism was discussed. Particularly, a series of experiments were carried out to explore the influence of processing variables on the formation of near-field electrospun PVP nanofibers, including concentration, humidity, collecting position, and spinning distance.

ELECTROSPINNING OF ZEIN/CHITOSAN COMPOSITE FIBROUS MEMBRANES

Zein/chitosan composite fibrous membranes were fabricated from aqueous ethanol solutions by electrospinning. Poly（vinyl pyrrolidone） （PVP） was introduced to facilitate the electrospinning process of zein/chitosan composites. The asspun zein/chitosan/PVP composite fibrous membranes were characterized by scanning electron microscopy （SEM） and tensile tests. SEM images indicated that increasing zein and PVP concentrations led to an increase in average diameters of the composite fibers. In order to improve stability in wet stage and mechanical properties, the composite fibrous membranes were crosslinked by hexamethylene diisocyanate （HDI）. The crosslinked composite fibrous membranes showed slight morphological change after immersion in water for 24 h. Mechanical tests revealed that tensile strength and elongation at break of the composite fibrous membranes were increased after crosslinking, whereas Young＇s modulus was decreased.

Recent Progress on the Fabrication of Ultrafine Polyamide-6 Based Nanofibers Via Electrospinning: A Topical Review

Electrospinning is a highly versatile technique to prepare continuous fibers with diameters of the order of nanometers. The remarkable high aspect ratio and high porosity bring electrospun nanofibers highly attractive to various nanotechnological applications such as filtration membranes, protective clothing, drug delivery, tissue-engineering, biosensors, catalysis, fuel cells and so on. In this review, we collectively summarized the recent progress in developments of the electrospun ultrafine polyamide-6 based nanofibers preparation,characterization and their applications. Information of this polyamide-6 and composites together with their processing conditions for electrospinning of ultrafine nanofibers has been summarized in this review. The recent developments made during last few years on these materials are addressed in this review. We are anticipating that this review certainly drive the researchers for developing more intensive investigation for exploring in many technological areas.

Electrospinning Preparation and Mechanical Properties of Polymethyl Methacrylate (PMMA)/Halloysite Nanotubes (HNTs) Composite Nanofibers

The paper was aimed at the PMMA/HNTs composite nanofibers with well enhanced mechanical properties prepared by electrospinning technique for the first time. A series of characterizations were used to illustrate the structure and properties of the composite nanofibers by SEM, XRD, FTIR and DSC techniques. The effect of the PMMA/HNTs composite nanofibers in relationship to the mass percentage of HNTs was investigated. The results indicated that HNTs wrapped in polymer matrix were highly oriented and dispersed by the electrospinning technique, resulting in improved thermal stability of the polymer. Moreover, the mechanical properties of the PMMA/HNTs composite nanofibers which were dependent on HNTs mass content were measured, and good enhanced mechanical properties were obtained.

Tunable 3D Nanofiber Architecture of Polycaprolactone by Divergence Electrospinning for Potential Tissue Engineering Applications

The creation of biomimetic cell environments with micro and nanoscale topographical features resembling native tissues is critical for tissue engineering. To address this challenge, this study focuses on an innovative electrospinning strategy that adopts a symmetrically divergent electric field to induce rapid self-assembly of aligned polycaprolactone(PCL) nanofibers into a centimeter-scale architecture between separately grounded bevels. The 3D microstructures of the nanofiber scaffolds were characterized through a series of sectioning in both vertical and horizontal directions. PCL/collagen(type I)nanofiber scaffolds with different density gradients were incorporated in sodium alginate hydrogels and subjected to elemental analysis. Human fibroblasts were seeded onto the scaffolds and cultured for 7 days. Our studies showed that the inclination angle of the collector had significant effects on nanofiber attributes, including the mean diameter, density gradient, and alignment gradient. The fiber density and alignment at the peripheral area of the 45°-collector decreased by 21% and 55%, respectively, along the z-axis,while those of the 60°-collector decreased by 71% and 60%, respectively. By altering the geometry of the conductive areas on the collecting bevels, polyhedral and cylindrical scaffolds composed of aligned fibers were directly fabricated. By using a four-bevel collector, the nanofibers formed a matrix of microgrids with a density of 11%. The gradient of nitrogen-to-carbon ratio in the scaffold-incorporated hydrogel was consistent with the nanofiber density gradient. The scaffolds provided biophysical stimuli to facilitate cell adhesion, proliferation, and morphogenesis in 3D.

Decoration of Electrospun Nanofibers with Magnetic Nanoparticles via Electrospinning and Sol-gel Process

Polyacrylonitrile（PAN）/Fe3O4 composite nanofibers were successfully obtained through electrospinning and sol-gel technology. The resulting magnetic Fe3O4 nanoparticles were homogeneously distributed on the surface of PAN nanofibers and the diameters of polyacrylonitrile nanofibers and nanoparticles were easily controlled, respectively. The distribution of Fe3O4 nanoparticles inside the nanofibrous composite was investigated by field emission scanning electron microscopy and transmission electron microscopy. X-ray diffraction reveals the presence of Fe3O4 nanoparticles in the composite nanofiber. The resulting sample shows a super paramagnetic behavior.

Preparation of Ultrafine Water-soluble Polymers Nanofiber Mats via Electrospinning

A series of water-soluble polymers such as poly（ethylene oxide）（PEO）, polyacrylamide（PAM） and poly（vinyl pyrrilidone）（PVP） was successfully prepared via the electrospinning of their aqueous solutions without the use of a surfactant. The effects of solution properties on the electrospinning of PEO, PAM and PVP solutions were investigated. The viscosity of the solution, charge density carried by the jet, and the surface tension of the solution are the key factors that influence the morphology and diameter size of the fibers. The viscosity of the solution was measured on a modular compact rheometer. The morphology and the diameter size distribution of the fibers were observed under an environmental scanning electron microscope（ESEM）. The results show that the diameters of the nanofibers electro spun from the solutions of these water soluble polymers were uniform and less than 300 nm.

Evolution of Morphology and Properties of Sulfonated Poly(ether ether ketone ketone) Membranes Fabricated via Electrospinning

Sulfonated poly（ether ether ketone kctone）（SPEEKK） membranes with different degrees of sulfonation（DS） were successfully prepared via electrospinning method. The morphology of the resulted membranes varies from nanospheres to nanofibers with increasing the concentration of SPEEKK. The conductivities of the membranes prepared under the same condition increase with the DS increasing. The spherical morphological membranes with a DS of 1.2 show the highest proton conductivity, 0.55 S/cm, which is much higher than those of the membranes prepared via normal solution evaporation method. The results show that electrospinning is an efficient method to prepare high performance SPEEKK membranes with different morphologies.

Synthesis and Electrical Properties of TiO_2 Nanoparticles Embedded in Polyamide-6 Nanofibers Via Electrospinning

We report on the synthesis and characterizations of TiO2 nanoparticles embedded in polyamide-6composite nanofibers by using electrospinning technique. The influence of substrate on the electrical characteristics of polyamide-6/TiO2 composite nanofibers was investigated. The resultant nanofibers exhibit good incorporation of TiO2 nanoparticles. The doping of TiO2 nanoparticles into the polyamide-6 nanofibers were confirmed by high resolution transmission electron microscopy and energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy. Photoluminescence（PL） and cathodoluminescence（CL） spectroscopy were also used to characterize the samples.The PL and CL spectra reveal that the as-spun polyamide-6/TiO2 composite nanofibers consisted of overlapping of two broad emission bands due to the contribution of polyamide-6（centered at about 475 nm）, which might originate from organic functional groups of polyamide-6 and TiO2 nanoparticles（centered around 550 nm）. The electrical conductivity of the polyamide-6/TiO2 composite nanofibers on different substrates was carried out.It was found that the electrical conductivity of the polyamide-6/TiO2 composite nanofibers on silicon substrate was in the range of 13 μA, and about 1 to 20 p A for the paper and glass substrates.

Preparation and Photocatalysis of Mesoporous TiO_2 Nanofibers via an Electrospinning Technique

Mesoporous TiO2 nanofibers have been synthesized by a new method that combines sol-gel chemistry and electrospinning technique.The obtained mesoporous TiO2 nanofibers were characterized with scanning electron microscopy（SEM）,X-ray diffraction（XRD）,transmission electron microscopy（TEM） and nitrogen adsorptiondesorption isotherms.The photocatalytic performance was evaluated by the photocatalytic degradation of Rhodamine B under UV light irradiation.The results show that mesoporous TiO2 nanofibers exhibit higher photocatalytic activity compared with nonporous TiO2 nanofibers.