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Amazing contrast between molten electrospinning and traditional electrospinning: Do you know how they differ in their manufacturing process?
In modern manufacturing technology, Melt Electrospinning has gradually become a highly-attractive technology, known for its potential applications in biomedical, textile and filtration.Compared with traditional solution electrospinning technology, molten electrospinning has several significant advantages, making its application prospects in materials science broader.
Modified electrospinning is a processing technology that produces fibrous structures from polymer melts.
The characteristic of molten electrospinning is that it does not use volatile solvents, so it is particularly important in some applications, especially concerns regarding the toxicity and accumulation of solvents.The development of this technology dates back to 1936, when Charles Norton first described the concept of molten electrospinning.But it was not until 1981 that Larrondo and Manley discussed the technique in detail in a series of papers.Over time, related research on melt electrospinning emerged one after another, until 2011, when this technology was even proposed as a new 3D printing technology.
The basic principles of molten electrospinning
The physical principles of molten electrospinning are the same as those of traditional electrospinning fiber stretching.The difference is that the physical properties of the polymer melt are very different from those of the polymer solution.Molten polymers are more viscous than polymer solutions, and in melt electrospinning, the process of electrochemical jetting is more predictable.Melting jet requires cooling to solidify, while electrospinning is dependent on the evaporation of the solvent.
Process parameters
Temperature
When melting electrospinning is performed, a certain temperature must be maintained to ensure that the polymer remains molten at the tip of the nozzle.Typically, the nozzle length is relatively short, which is crucial for the control of the entire process time.
Flow rate
The most important parameter to control the fiber diameter is the flow rate of the polymer feeding into the nozzle.Generally speaking, the higher the flow rate, the larger the fiber diameter is.Unlike traditional solution electrospinning, the polymer used for molten electrospinning is almost completely collected, which helps improve the efficiency of the process.
Molecular Weight
The molecular weight of the polymer is crucial to the success of melt electrospinning.For uniform linear polymers, too low molecular weights (e.g. below 30,000 g/mol) can cause damage and mass loss of the fibers.High molecular weight (such as more than 100,000 g/mol) may face flow difficulties when passing through the nozzle.In melt electrospinning, it is generally recommended to use polymers between 40,000 and 80,000 g/mol.
Voltage
The way the voltage is modified has little effect on the resulting fiber diameter, but the report states that the optimal voltage required to ensure high quality and consistent fibers still exist.The voltages used for melt electrospinning range from 0.7kV to 60kV.
Polymers used
The polymer required for melt electrospinning should have a melting point or glass transition temperature (Tg), which means that certain thermoset polymers (such as celluloid) and certain bioderived polymers (such as collagen) are not suitable for this. technology.Frequently used molten electrospun polymers include polycaprolactone, polylactic acid and poly(lactic acid-glycolic acid), etc.
Application Fields
Melt electrospinning has potential applications similar to conventional electrospinning, but the absence of toxic solvents makes it particularly prominent in biomedical related fields.In the field of tissue engineering, molten electrospinning is used to treat biological materials, avoiding the potential harm caused by the use of volatile solvents.In addition, molten electrospinning can also be used to make drug carriers for more efficient drug delivery.
Tisolation Engineering
In the field of tissue engineering, molten electrospinning is used to process biomedical materials.By avoiding toxic volatile solvents, this helps conduct relevant research.Fibers produced by molten electrospinning can build tissue scaffolds of various sizes, thereby promoting cell penetration and the generation of exomatrices.
Drug delivery
In addition, melt electrospinning technology can also prepare medicinal fibers for drug delivery.This technology is in a strong momentum in the field of pharmacy because it can combine the advantages of solvent-free to effectively perform solid-phase diffusion or solid-phase solution preparation of drugs to promote drug dissolution.
Fluid electrospinning writing
In addition, Melt Electrospinning Writing utilizes predictable melt electrospinning paths so that polymer fibers can be accurately deposited on the collector.When the collector moves at sufficient speed, the molten electrospun fibers can be deposited in a stacked manner.This approach makes it possible to manufacture complex sequential structures and considers molten electrospinning writing as a category of 3D printing techniques.
Based on the above, melt electrospinning technology has shown great potential in many fields, and its scope of application will undoubtedly continue to expand in the future.With the increase in demand for new materials, can we expect molten electrospinning technology to bring greater innovation and change to the manufacturing industry?
