A Review and Analysis on Recent Advancements in Bubble Electrospinning Technology for Nanofiber Production

Abstract

Background: Multiple applications of nanofiber in various segments of science and technology have sparked the interest of innovators to explore the innovative approaches for nanofiber production. The bubble electrospinning technique is the most versatile and simplest approach to scale up the production of nanofiber at the industrial level. Numerous patent applications have been filed with innovations and advancements in the field of bubble electrospinning technique. Methods: In present work, different patent applications in the field of bubble electrospinning technique, which represents the advancement in bubble electrospinning technology, are searched and analyzed using various paid and free patent databases. The patent search results are compiled, analyzed and individual innovations are studied in detail to bring all the advancements hitherto in the bubble electrospinning technology under the purview of one review article. Results: The “bubble ws3 electrospin” syntax in the structured search (TAC) facility of the patseer® has revealed most relevant patents on advancement in bubble electrospinning. After applying the family patent filter to the search result (33 patents), ten patents are selected for detailed study. The gist of the invention from each of the patent application or granted patent is recapitulated in this paper, along with their mosaics. Conclusion: Definite number of inventions are available in the field of bubble electrospinning technique. Inventions, which are disclosed, might have their pros and cons with respect to ease of acceptance by the industrial fraternity for large-scale production depending upon simplicity or complexity of the instrument. There is a profound scope of innovation in the bubble electrospinning technology in the areas like bubble stabilization, size and production rate control and much more.