Investigation of PAN:Hemp Stems Nanofibers Produced by Electrospinning Method

Abstract

In this study, the hemp stem (cannabis) nanofibers have been produced employing the electrospinning method by changing parameters including voltage, and deposition time. The nanosized particles of hemp stems have been mechanically produced by ball milling technique. The powder hemp stem obtained by ball-milling have been prepared in polyacrylonitrile (PAN) polymer with N, N-dimethylformamide (DMF) solution. The optical, morphological and chemical bonding properties of the obtained hemp nanofibers have been analysed employing Ultraviolet-Visible-Near infrared (UV-Vis-NIR) spectroscopy, Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) and Fourier Transform Infra-Red (FTIR) spectroscopy, respectively. The diameters of hemp stems nanofibers with PAN polymer have been obtained ranging from 30 to few hundreds of nanometre. Absorbance spectrum of PAN: Hemp stems have been plotted covering from UV to infrared region. Energy band gap value has been calculated as 3.5 eV using Tauc-plotting equations. PAN: Hemp stems has absorbed more photons in UV and visible regions than infrared region. In order to determine the thermal endurance of the produced hemp nanofibers, Thermogravimetric Analysis (TGA) has been carried out for temperatures up to 800 oC. TGA measurements has inferred that both PAN and Hemp stem nanofibers continue losing weight gradually after first sharp decrease at around 300 oC and almost completely disintegrate at 800 oC.