Composite membranes of two or more polymers have recently become popular for many applications. The integration of chemical and physical properties of the contributing polymers lead to higher quality and performance characteristics of composite membranes.  Cellulose acetate (CAc) and poly (vinyl alcohol) (PVA) is electrospun from one solution in DMSO as a low volatile solvent, for the first time. The electrospun membranes are characterized by Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) and Thermal Gravimetric Analysis (TGA). CAc is a derivative of the naturally abundant and cheap polysaccharide, cellulose, an environmentally friendly polymer which is a popular candidate in the production of an array of materials with different applications such as filtration, protective clothing, electronics, biomedicine, wound dressing, and drug delivery. As a versatile starting material, CAc can be processed into fibers, membranes, and films. PVA has unique physical and mechanical properties that are beneficial in many applications including the production of electrospun fibers and membranes. It can also serve as a carrier polymer to assist in the electrospinning of CAc. The co-electrospinning of CAc and PVA from one solution results in a membrane containing fibers of both polymers while reducing the steps of preparing composite membranes, which are typically prepared by electrospinning one polymer solution on top of the other, followed by crosslinking of separately spun membranes; or by coaxial or multijet electrospinning of two or more separate polymer solutions., DMSO was found to be a suitable solvent for the co-electrospinning of CAc and PVA, based on the solubility of CAc and PVA in DMSO. SEM images and TGA plots show that the resulting membranes have a uniform fiber distribution and considerable heat resistance.

Electrospun composite membranes of cellulose acetate (CAc) and poly (vinyl alcohol) (PVA)

249th National Meeting (2015)

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