Highly Transparent Carbon Nanofibrous Membranes Inspired by Dragonfly Wings.

Abstract

Carbon nanofibrous membrane (CNFM) materials are commonly black and opaque, and their poor optical performance severely limits their application in emerging fields, such as electronic skin, wearable devices, and environmental technologies. However, it is extremely difficult for carbon nanofibrous membranes to achieve high light transmittance owing to their complex fibrous structures and high light absorption. Few researchers have studied transparent carbon nanofibrous membrane (TCNFM) materials. In the current study, a biomimetic TCNFM inspired by dragonfly wings is fabricated using electrospinning technologies and a self-designed patterned substrate, with the aim to construct a differential electric field. Compared with the disordered CNFM, the resultant TCNFM yields an approximately 18-fold higher light transmittance. The freestanding TCNFMs also exhibit high porosities (>90%), good flexibility, and good mechanical properties. The mechanism by which the TCNFMs achieve high transparency and reduce light absorption is also elucidated. In addition, the TCNFMs display a high PM0.3 removal efficiency (>90%), low air resistance (<100 Pa), and good conductive properties, including a low resistivity (<0.37 Ω·cm).