Increase the Surface PANI Occupancy of Electrospun PMMA/PANI Fibers: Effect of the Electrospinning Parameters on Surface Segregation

Abstract

For preparing high-performance electrospun fibers with functional molecules that cannot cross-entangle themselves, such as conductive polymers, promoting the aggregation of functional molecules on the surface by surface segregation is a promising approach. In the present study, electrospun polymethyl methacrylate/polyaniline (PMMA/PANI) fibers were prepared under various conditions, including solution composition, applied voltage, tip-to-collector distance, temperature, humidity, and gas-phase solvent concentration, to examine the effects of the parameters on fiber morphology and surface segregation. The changes in fiber morphology and variations in the intensity of PANI and PMMA’s characteristic bands were investigated with scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and Raman spectroscopy. The results demonstrated that by changing the saturation difference and the viscosity, the amount of PMMA and PANI added significantly influenced whether surface segregation could occur. The effect of other investigated parameters on surface segregation was concluded to alter the molecular migratable time by affecting the jet flight time and the solvent volatilization rate. Among them, increasing the solvent concentration could significantly promote surface segregation without sacrificing morphological advantages. When the solvent concentration increased from 1.4 to 158 mg/m3, the Raman peak intensity ratio of PANI and PMMA increased from 2.91 to 5.05, while the fiber diameter remained essentially constant.