Polyaniline/polyvinylpyrrolidone nanofibers via nozzle-free electrospinning

Abstract

Polyaniline (PANI) in its emeraldine base (PANI-EB) and salt (PANI-ES) forms was combined with polyvinylpyrrolidone (PVP) to produce nanofibers in a one-step electrospinning process using a nozzle-free electrospinning setup for the first time. The surface morphologies and chemical structure of the composite nanofibers were characterized by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), X-ray diffraction (XRD), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy—attenuated total reflectance (FTIR-ATR), and energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDX). Four PANI/PVP electrospun nanofibers with different PANI concentrations were prepared to investigate the effect of PANI concentration on the structure and properties of the nanofibers. The incorporation of different contents of PANI-EB and PANI-ES in the PVP solution and their impact on the fiber morphology were investigated.