Effects of post-draw processing on the structure and functional properties of electrospun PVDF-HFP nanofibers

Adriano A. Conte, Khosro Shirvani, Harrison Hones, Alexander Wildgoose, Xue Ye, Raghid Najjar, Xiao Hu, Wei Xue, Vince Z. Beachley

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

24 Scopus citations

Abstract

This study reports the effects of post-draw processing on the structural and functional properties of electrospun poly(vinylidene fluoride-co-hexafluoropropylene) (PVDF-HFP) nanofibers. Previous studies have independently demonstrated the potential of the electrospinning process or the post-drawing process to enhance the piezoelectric properties of PVDF nanofiber, and thin film structures respectively. However, post drawing electrospun nanofibers has been difficult to achieve. To overcome this limitation, a parallel automated track device was implemented to post-draw thousands of individual PVDF-HFP electrospun nanofibers per minute. Relationships were established showing that yield strength, Young's modulus, and piezoelectric output were enhanced with increasing draw ratio. The normalized voltage output of PVDF-HFP nanofibers post-drawn to a draw ratio of 3 increased by four-fold compared to undrawn control. We hypothesize that polymer chain and crystal alignment in the direction of the fiber axis, which were increased by post drawing, resulted in enhanced voltage output of PVDF-HFP nanofibers under mechanical stimulation.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Pages (from-to)192-200
Number of pages9
JournalPolymer
Volume171
DOIs
StatePublished - May 8 2019

All Science Journal Classification (ASJC) codes

  • Organic Chemistry
  • Polymers and Plastics
  • Materials Chemistry

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