A New Paradigm for Scalable Fabrication of Polymer Nanofibers by Bulk Shear and Phase Separation

该奖项的研究目标是开发一种新的高效和可扩展的技术，用于从许多溶液加工的聚合物中制造直径小至200纳米的聚合物纤维。它基于粘性介质在剪切应力下抗溶剂诱导沉淀的大块过程。该项目将使该技术从探索性研究转向常规和复合纳米纤维的工程制造。它将寻求建立纤维形成的普遍分子纠缠规则。聚合物-溶剂的相互作用将被研究，以量化纤维形成的竞争动力学，由于剪切和相分离，纤维硬化，由于溶剂和反溶剂扩散。这种方法对于复合纤维的生产具有特殊的优势，因为它不涉及通过喷嘴挤压，并且避免了由于颗粒聚集而堵塞的问题。建立功能性纤维和棒的制造原理。这些纤维和棒将含有催化和磁性纳米粒子、酶和纤维素纳米晶体。如果成功的话，这项研究将导致大规模制造功能性微纤维和纳米纤维的新技术。这种经济的纳米纤维生产可以立即改善高效过滤器、功能性纺织品、组织工程支架、柔性电子和固定化生物催化剂基板的制造前景。该方法允许通过掺入无机和有机颗粒和生物分子来制造可生物降解和多功能纤维。它可以与可持续技术特别相关，因为它能够从聚合物回收过程中产生的溶液中创造高价值的产品。博士后研究人员将在基础科学与技术开发、创业以及与工业研究人员互动的结合方面接受培训。该项目还将为本科生研究人员提供培训场地，因为其科学组成部分与环境保护和可持续技术有关。

The research objective of this award is to develop a new efficient and scalable technique for the fabrication of polymer fibers as small as 200 nm in diameter from a number of solution-processed polymers. It is based on a bulk process of antisolvent-induced precipitation under shear stress in viscous media. The project will allow moving the technology from exploratory research to the engineered fabrication of regular and composite nanofibers. It will seek to establish universal molecular entanglement rules for fiber formation. Polymer-solvent interactions will be investigated to quantify the competitive kinetics of fiber formation, due to shear and phase separation, and fiber hardening, due to solvent and antisolvent diffusion. This method has specific advantages for production of composite fibers since it does not involve extrusion through nozzles and avoids the problem of clogging due to particle aggregation. Principles for making functional fibers and rods will be established. These fibers and rods will contain catalytic and magnetic nanoparticles, enzymes and cellulose nanocrystals. If successful, this research will result in new large-scale technologies for making functional micro- and nanofibers. Such economic nanofiber production could immediately improve the prospects of manufacturing of highly efficient filters, functional textiles, scaffolds for tissue engineering, and substrates for flexible electronics and immobilized biocatalysts. The method allows the creation of biodegradable and multifunctional fibers by incorporation of inorganic and organic particles and biomolecules. It can be specifically relevant for sustainable technologies, since it is capable of creating high value products from solutions produced during polymer recycling. A postdoctoral researcher will be trained in a combination of fundamental science with technology development, entrepreneurship and interactions with industrial researchers. The project will also provide a training ground for undergraduate researchers as its scientific components relate to environmental protection and sustainable technologies.