A novel method for making silica nanofibres by using electrospun fibres ofpolyvinylalcohol/silica composite as precursor

Abstract

For the first time, silica nanofibres with diameters of 200–400 nm wereprepared by using electrospun fibres of polyvinylalcohol/silica compositeas precursor. The products were characterized by the scanning electronmicroscopy (SEM), Fourier transform-infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR), and x-raydiffractometry (XRD) methods. The results showed that the crystalline phase andmorphology of silica fibres were substantially influenced by the calcinationtemperature. The amorphous silica nanofibres could be obtained at 550ºC.