Recently the research article "A method for producing conductive graphene biopolymer nanofibrous fabrics by exploitation of an ionic liquid dispersant in electrospinning" written by the researchers of Tallinn University of Technology was published in a leading peer-reviewed journal Carbon .
The article introduces nanofibers, a material produced by the electrospinning device at the Laboratory of Polymers and Textile Technology in Tallinn University of Technology, and their expanding range of applications. It is not possible to produce fibers with a diameter smaller than a micrometer by using conventional fiber spinning methods. Therefore, electrospinning technology is introduced, by which nanofibers are created by applying high voltage to polymer solution. The beginning of the 20th century can be considered to be the starting point of electrospinning as a scientific discipline, the quest for industrial applications started 50 years ago. In recent years, there has been a surge of interest in electrospinning. One of the co-authors of the research article, Head of the Laboratory of Polymers and Textile Technology of Tallinn University of Technology, Professor Andres Krumme says, "The electrospun carbon nanomaterial can also be called smart fabric. The nanofibers forming the material are 100 times thinner in diameter than hair, being however extremely strong, tough, flexible and due to carbon content also conductive. The material allows efficient energy storage owing to its high speci?c surface area."
The specific properties of nanofibers render it a promising material for future applications:
"Cellulose used as the original raw material of smart fabric is very acceptable for human body due to its properties, i.e. the raw material used in polymer fabric is bio-based and supports the natural carbon cycle," Andres Krumme says.
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Source : Carbon , 2018 https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S000862231830767X
Carbon