Fabrication and characterization of silver nanoparticle impregnated uniaxially aligned fibre yarns by one-step electrospinning process

Generating aligned fibres by traditional electrospinning setup is a significant topic which demands serious consideration. A versatile approach for the generation of uniaxially aligned electrospun fibre yarns by simply altering the electrostatic properties of the polymer solution was discussed in this work. Uniaxially aligned electrospun poly(ethylene-co-vinyl alcohol) (EVAL) fibre yarns were fabricated by one-step electrospinning setup. The alignment was accomplished by increasing the solution conductivity by the addition of AgNO₃ to the solution. The jet produced was highly stable and followed a straight path, owing to the enhanced solution conductivity. High degree of fibre alignment was obtained even at low surface velocity of the collector. Subsequently the fibre yarns were thermally reduced to obtain silver nanoparticles (Ag NPs) on the surface of the fibres. The so produced Ag NPs incorporated EVAL fibre yarns were characterized by thermogravimetic analysis, energy dispersive X-ray analysis and scanning electron microscopy. The aligned fibre yarns also exhibited excellent mechanical strength. The method could be recommended for the simultaneous generation of aligned and Ag NPs impregnated fibre yarns for broad spectrum of applications.