Electrospinning Fabrication of Poly(vinyl alcohol)/TiO₂Nanofibers

Abstract

Poly(vinyl alcohol) (PVA)/titanium dioxide ($TiO_2$) composite nanofibers were produced at different $TiO_2$ concentrations (0.5, 1 and 1.5 wt.%) using the electrospinning method. The parameters of electrospinning including polymer contents, voltage and tip-to-collector distance (TCD) were optimized for fabrication process. The study showed that 7.5 wt.% PVA, 15 kV applied voltage and 15 cm TCD are the best condition to obtain uniform PVA/$TiO_2$ nanofibers. $TiO_2$ nanoparticles give significant effect in fiber morphology. $TiO_2$ content increases the diameter of the fibers and roughen the fiber surfaces. The PVA/$TiO_2$ nanofibers were characterized by scanning electron microscope (SEM), transmission electron microscope (TEM) and X-ray diffraction (XRD).