Abstract
In this study, polyacrylonitrile (PAN) was mixed with a renewable polymer, lignin, to produce electrospun nanofibers by using an electrospinning technique. Lignin was utilized as a soft template that was removed from the nanofibers by using a selective dissolution technique to create porous PAN nanofibers. These nanofibers were characterized with Fourier transform infrared (FTIR), field emission scanning electron microscopy (FESEM), thermogravimetry analysis (TGA), X-ray diffraction (XRD), and Brunauer-Emmett-Teller (BET) to study their properties and morphology. The results showed that lignin can be homogeneously mixed into the PAN solution and successfully electrospun into nanofibers. FESEM results showed a strong relationship between the PAN: lignin ratio and the diameter of the electrospun fibers. Lignin was successfully removed from electrospun nanofibers by a selective chemical dissolution technique, which resulted in roughness and porousness on the surface of the nanofibers. Based on the BET result, the specific surface area of the PAN/lignin nanofibers was more than doubled following the removal of lignin compared to PAN nanofibers. The highest specific surface area of nanofibers after selective chemical dissolution was found at an 8:2 ratio of PAN/lignin, which was 32.42 m2g−1 with an average pore diameter of 5.02 nm. The diameter of electrospun nanofibers was also slightly reduced after selective chemical dissolution. Porous PAN nanofibers can be seen as the precursors to the production of highly porous carbon nanofibers.
Highlights
In recent years, nanotechnology has become a promising technology for the future
The highly porous and specific surface area of PAN/lignin electrospun nanofibers was successfully prepared by using lignin as a soft template and through a selective chemical dissolution technique
The morphology showed a significant change in the surface of the nanofibers before and after selective chemical dissolution technique
Summary
Nanotechnology has become a promising technology for the future. There are many types of nanomaterials, such as nanoparticles, nanofibers, nanotubes, nanowires, and quantum dots, that have garnered extensive attention due to their unique properties and characteristics [1]. Polyacrylonitrile (PAN) is a polymer usually used as the precursor to the formation of carbon fibers due to its excellent mechanical strength, low flammability, good thermal stability and chemical resistance [21], such as PAN-based carbon fiber electrodes for energy storage application [22,23] and for thermal materials [24]. The selective chemical dissolution technique is one of the processes to produce a porous structure and higher surface area in a polymer. This can be achieved through the electrospinning of polymer blend solutions to form a nanofiber, followed by the selective chemical dissolution process which involves the removal of one component using an appropriate solvent that only dissolves a certain polymer in the blend’s nanofibers. A renewable polymer, lignin was used as a soft template to create a porous and rougher surface for the nanofibers through the selective chemical dissolution technique
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