Effect of Electrospinning on the Ferroelectric Phase Content of Polyvinylidene Difluoride Fibers

Polyvinylidene difluoride (PVDF) fibers were prepared by electrospinning from dimethyl formamide (DMF) solutions. The effects of the electrospinning processing conditions on the formation of the α and β phases of PVDF were studied using infrared spectroscopy and differential scanning calorimetry. We have shown that β-phase PVDF fibers can be electrospun directly from a dimethyl formamide (DMF) solution with a maximum fraction of β phase, F(β)max, of 0.75. The fraction of β phase is found to be greater for smaller-diameter fibers and those spun at an increased voltage.