Functional nanofiber mats for medical and biotechnological applications

Abstract

Nanofiber mats from different polymers, possibly blended with other organic or inorganic components, can be created by the electrospinning technology. Such nanofiber mats possess large surface-volume ratios in comparison with other textile fabrics, such as common nonwovens. This property enables enhanced interactions with their environment, making them suitable for applications in wound dressing, drug delivery, biotechnological filter technology, etc., especially if prepared from biopolymers with intrinsically antimicrobial or other qualities. In a recent project, we investigate the possibilities to create such nanofiber mats from diverse (bio-) polymers by "green" electrospinning, i.e., electrospinning from aqueous solutions or other nontoxic solvents. The article gives an overview of the latest results from needleless electrospinning pure polymers and polymer blends as well as typical physical and chemical properties of the created nanofiber mats, especially for medical and biotechnological purposes, and shows diverse possibilities to crosslink water-soluble biopolymer nanofiber mats.