Summary
Conductive nanofibres are only useful if their electrical and mechanical properties can be measured reliably, which is difficult when the fibres are highly oriented and extremely fine. This study sets out a dependable approach to determining conductivity and elasticity in such fibres, produced by blending polyaniline as a conductive filler into high molar mass poly(ethylene oxide), polycaprolactone and poly(lactic acid). Two factors emerge as decisive: the interaction between filler and matrix, and the molar mass of the host polymer - parameters often overlooked when a conductive blend fails to perform as expected.
Authors & Affiliations
Linari Electrospinning Systems
Linari high voltage generator (positive polarity)
A Linari Engineering S.r.l. generator (Valpiana, Italy) supplied direct current with positive polarity on the needle - the standard configuration of our high voltage units, whose control unit is coded HVG-CONT-LCD. Highly oriented fibres additionally require a rotating collector.