Two pitches with different average molecular structures were electrospun and compared in terms of the properties of their fibers after oxidative stabilization, carbonization, and activation. The precursor with a higher molecular weight and greater content of aliphatic groups (Pitch A) resulted in better solubility and spinnability compared to that with a lower molecular weight and lower aliphatic group content (Pitch B). The electrical conductivity of the carbon fiber web from Pitch A of 67 S/cm was higher than that from Pitch B of 52 S/cm. The carbon fiber web based on Pitch A was activated more readily with lower activation energy, resulting in a higher specific surface area compared to the carbon fiber based on Pitch B (Pitch A, 2053 m2/g; Pitch B, 1374 m2/g).

Novel unsaturated polyester composites with PAN-based nanofiber, stabilized PAN nanofiber, and carbonized nanofiber webs have been fabricated, respectively, and the effects of the nanofiber web content on their electrical resistivity, the thermal stability, dynamic storage modulus, and fracture surfaces were studied. The result demonstrated that the introduction of just one single layer (which is corresponding to 2 wt.%) of the carbonized nanofiber web to unsaturated polyester resin (UPE) could contribute to reducing markedly the electrical resistivity of the resin reflecting the percolation threshold, to improving the storage modulus, and to increasing the thermal stability above 350℃. The effect on decreasing the resistivity and increasing the modulus was the greatest at the carbonized PAN nanofiber web content of 8 wt.%, particularly showing that the storage modulus was increased about 257~283% in the measuring temperature range of -25℃ to 50℃. The result also exhibited that the carbonized PAN nanofibers were distributed uniformly and compactly in the unsaturated polyester, connecting the matrix three-dimensionally through the thickness direction of each specimen. It seemed that such the fiber distribution played a role in reducing the electrical resistivity as well as in improving the dynamic storage modulus.

Multilayer Poly methyl methacrylate (PMMA)/ Poly vinyl alcohol (PVA) bone plates were fabricated using electrospinning and in vitro investigations were carried out for pre-clinical biocompatibility studies. The initial cellular cytotoxicity of the methacrylate (PMMA)/ Poly vinyl alcohol (PVA) bone plates was measured by MTT (3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide) assay using fibroblast-like L-929 cells. Cellular adhesion and differentiation studies were carried out using osteoblast-like MG-63 cells. As simulated body fluid (SBF) contains the same ionic concentration of body fluid and any bioactive material tends to deposit bone-like apatite on the samples surfaces into the SBF, in vitro bioactivity of the multilayer bone plates were investigated using SBF. We also studied the internal organization and tensile strength of the multilayer PMMA/PVA bone plates using micro-computed topography (μ-CT) and universal testing instrument (UTI, Korea) respectively. The cellular cytotoxicity study with MTT confirmed that the cellular viability was 78 to 90% which indicates good cyto-compatibility. Scanning electron microscopic findings revealed a good attachment and adhesion phenomenon of MG-63 cells onto the surfaces of the samples. Cellular differentiation studies also showed that osteogenic differentiation was switched on in a timely manner and affirmed along with that of the control group. Bone-like apatite formation on the surfaces was confirmed within 14 days of SBF incubation. Initial organizations of the multilayer PMMA/PVA bone plates were characterized as dense and uniform. The tensile strength of the post-pressing electronspun mat was higher than that of the pre-electronspun mat. These results suggest that a multilayer PMMA/PVA bone plate system is biocompatible, bioactive and a very good alternative bone plate system.

Electrospinning is a technique that produces sub-micron sized continuous fibers by electric force from polymer solutions or melts. Due to its versatile manufacturability and the cost effectiveness, this method has been recently adopted for the fabrication of one-dimensional materials. Here, we fabricated polyacrylonitrile (PAN) polymer fibers, from which uniform carbon fibers with diameters of 100-200 nm were obtained after carbonization at 800 ˚C in N2. Special emphasis was directed to the influence of the phase separated polymer solution on the morphology and the microstructure of the resulting carbon fiber. The addition of poly(stylene-co-acrylonitile) (SAN) makes the polymer solution phase separated, which allows for the formation of internal pores by its selective elimination after electrospinning. XPS and Raman Spectroscopy were used to confirm the surface composition and the degree of carbonization. At the PAN:SAN = 50:50 in vol%, the uniform carbon fibers with diameters of 300~500 nm and surface area of 131.6 m2g-1 were obtained.

In this study, porous electrospun carbon fibers were prepared by electrospinning with PAN and MgCl2, as a MgO precursor. MgO was selected as a substrate because of its chemical and thermal stability, no reaction with carbon, and ease of removal after carbonization by dissolving out in acidic solutions. MgCl2 was mixed with polyacrylonitrile (PAN) solution as a precursor of MgO with various weight ratios of MgCl2/PAN. The average diameter of porous electrospun carbon fibers increased from 1.3 to 3 μm, as the MgCl2 to PAN weight ratio increased. During the stabilization step, MgCl2 was hydrolyzed to MgOHCl by heat treatment. At elevated temperature of 823 K for carbonization step, MgOHCl was decomposed to MgO. Specific surface area and pore structure of prepared electrospun carbon fibers were decided by weight ratio of MgCl2/PAN. The amount of hydrogen storage increased with increase of specific surface area and micropore volume of prepared electrospun carbon fibers.

전기방사법을 이용하여 제조된 pelyestersulfone (PES)-bovin albumin serum (BSA) 친화막에 대하여 L-tryptophan에 대한 흡착특성을 연구하였다. FESEM과 Image Analyzer를 이용하여 방사조건에 따른 섬유의 직경분포를 비교분석 함으로써 섬유의 직경을 조절할 수 있음을 알았다. 또한, 2,2,3,4,4,4-Hexafluoro-1-butanol (HFB)와 BSA의 함량증가에 따른 미세섬유 발생빈도가 높아져서 Darcy 투과도, 기계적 물성, 발수성이 증가한다는 것을 알았다. L-tryptophan의 용출량은 tris-HCl 완충용액보다 borate-DMSO 완충용액에서 높았으며, A 8022형 BSA보다 A 7906형 BSA가 높은 용출량을 보였다. 이러한 결과는 BSA의 종류에 따른 그 특성에 기인하는 것으로 A 7906형은 A 8022형보다 순도가 높고 분자량 분포가 고르며, 사용 pH 환경이 더욱 안정적이기 때문이다.

We have demonstrated the feasibility of using electrospinning method to fabricate long and continuous composite nanofiber sheets of polyacrylonitrile (PAN) incorporated with zinc oxide (ZnO). Such PAN/ZnO composite nanofiber sheets represent an important step toward utilizing carbon nanofibers (CNFs) as materials to achieve remarkably enhanced physico-chemical properties. In an attempt to derive these advantages, we have used a variety of techniques such as field emission scanning electron microscopy (FE-SEM), transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and high resolution X-ray diffraction (HR-XRD) to obtain quantitative data on the materials. The CNFs produced are in the diameter range of 100 to 350 nm after carbonization at 1000℃. Electrical conductivity of the random CNFs was increased by increasing the concentration of ZnO. A dramatic improvement in porosity and specific surface area of the CNFs was a clear evidence of the novelty of the method used. This study indicated that the optimal ZnO concentration of 3 wt% is enough to produce CNFs having enhanced electrical and physico-chemical properties.

Functional nanomaterial is expected to have improved capacities on various fields. Especially, metal nanoparticles dispersed in polymer matrix and metal nanofiber, one of the functional nanomaterials, are able to achieve improvement of property in the electric and other related fields. In this study, the fabrication of metal (Ag) nanoparticle dispersed nanofibers were attempted. The Ag nanoparticle dispersed polymer nanofiber and Ag nanofiber were fabricated by electrospinning method using electric force. First, PVP/ nanofibers were synthesized by electrospinning in voltage with the starting materials (Ag-nitrate) added polymer (PVP; poly (vinylpyrrolidone)). Then Ag nanoparticle dispersed polymer nanofibers were fabricated to reduce hydrogen reduction at for 3hr. And Ag nanofibers were synthesized by the decomposited of PVP at for 3hr. The nanofibers were analyzed by XRD, TGA, FE-SEM and TEM. The experimental results showed that the Ag nanofibers could be applied in many fields as an advanced material.

In the present study, electrospun PAN precursor webs and the stabilized and carbonized nanofiber webs processed under different heat-treatment conditions were characterized by means of weight loss measurement, elemental analysis, scanning electron microscopy (SEM), attenuated total reflection-Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (ATR-FTIR), differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), thermogravimentric analysis (TGA), and X-ray diffraction (XRD) analysis. The result indicated that stabilization and carbonization processes with different temperatures and heating rates significantly influenced the chemical and morphological characteristics as well as the thermal properties of the stabilized and then subsequently carbonized nanofiber webs from PAN precursor webs. It was noted that the filament diameter and the carbon content of a carbonized nanofiber web as well as its weight change may be effectively monitored by controlling both stabilization and carbonization processes.

Polyethersulfone (PES)와 Bovine Serum Albumin (BSA) 용액으로 전기방사법을 이용하여 단백질 친화막을 제조하였다. 방사운전조건(방사용액의 농도, 전압, 방사속도, 방사거리)을 다양하게 조절하여 나노섬유의 크기를 관찰하였으며, 최적의 친화막 제조 조건을 확인할 수 있었다. XPS와 FT-IR로써 PES와 BSA의 결합을 확인하였으며, PES-BSA 나노섬유의 최적 방사 온도와 습도는 20~22℃와 45~55% 임을 알 수 있었다. 또한 PES 함량이 증가할수록 섬유의 크기가 증가하고, BSA의 경우 나노섬유의 크기에 큰 영향이 없음을 알았다. PES 7 wt%, BSA 0.7 wt%. Hexafluropropanol (HFP) 92.3 wt%의 용액을 이용하여 전압 10.0 kV, 방사거리 10 cm, 방사속도 1.0 mL/hr의 조건에서 방사한 경우 균일한 크기의 PES-BSA 나노섬유가 얻어졌다.

Recently, membrane can be prepared by two methods, phase inversion and electrospinning techniques. Phase inversion technique is a conventional but commercially preparation membrane. The most versatile of preparation in this technique is immersion of the cast film into nonsolvent bath, causing dense top layer with a finger-like pattern in the sub layer membrane. The membrane pore size getting from phase inversion is in the range of micro or submicrometer. As a result, it can be used as microfiltration and ultrafiltration applications. A new technique, electrospinning, is introduced for membrane preparation. Nonwoven nanofibrous mat or nanofibrous membrane is obtained. In this technique, electrostatic charge is introduced to the solution jet, causing a thin fiber with high surface area; hence it can be used in the applications where high surface area-to-volume or length-to-diameter ratios are required. Moreover, the pore size can be controlled by controlling the time of electrospinning. Hence, it can be used as a filter for filtering microparticles as well as nanoparticles.

Poly(lactide)s(PLA) is an attractive material to solve the problem of waste plastic accumulation in nature because of its biodegradability. The lactide exists in three stereoisomeric configurations: L-lactide, D-lactide, and meso-lactide. PLA stereocomplexes, formed by the mixing of two enantiomers, poly(L-lactide)(PLLA) and poly(D-lactide)(PDLA), have many favorable characteristics because the stereocomplex showed 50°C higher melting point than each enantiomeric polymer and the resistance toward degradation increased. In this study, we investigated the influence of the composition and the optical purity of each component on the formation of stereocomplexes. Also, the nanofibers of stereochemical PLA and their blends were prepared by electrospinning method. The properties of the obtained fibers were analyzed by differential scanning calorimetry and scanning electron microscopy. The results showed that a degree of stereocomplex was controlled by change of optical purity of each component. The enzymatic degradation of the fibers were strongly dependent on the stereocomplex.

Fibers of microbial polyesters, poly(3-hydroxy butyrate) (PHB) and poly(3-hydroxy butyrate-co-3-hydroxy valerate) (HB-co-HV) were prepared by electrospinning method. The obtained fibers were evaluated by differential scanning calorimetry, scanning electron microscopy, and oil absorption. The formation of fibers was strongly dependent on a concentration of solution. At a low concentration, the fibers contained beads which is from aggregation of polymer due to short evaporation time. The fine fibers with 2-5 mm diameter were obtained at 20 wt% concentration. The contact angle measurement showed that the fiber had higher water contact angle than the film due to the lotus-like effect. Oil absorbency showed that the fiber had higher than the film. Specially, the HB-co-HV fiber which was spinned from 20 wt% absorbed 65% oil which is much higher than that of a normal polypropylene-based oil paper.