Electrospinning: A Fiber Fabrication Technique for Water Purification

Abstract

With the development of the field of nanotechnology, scientists are keen to study the characteristics of nanomaterials. Electrospinning, an electrostatic fiber fabrication process, has attracted the attention of scientists worldwide because of its potential for diverse application and versatility. The noteworthy applications comprise its use in tissue engineering scaffolds, biosensors, filtration membrane, wound dressings mats, drug delivery, and enzyme immobilization. The nanoscale fibers are produced by employing high voltage to generate an electric field on a polymeric solution or melt. The nonwoven fibrous mats prepared by electrospinning can impersonate the extracellular components more thoroughly than can the mats produced by traditional methods. Such submicron-ranged fibrous material provides properties such as high surface-to-volume ratio, porosity, and the capability to achieve desired properties by simply modifying polymeric composition. More than 200 polymers have been used in the electrospinning process for numerous purposes, and the number is still growing with time.