Preparation and Property Evaluations of Polyvinyl Alcohol (PVA)/Graphene Nanosheets (GNs) Composite Nanofibrous Mats by Using Electrospinning

Abstract

This study aims to examine the influence of graphene nanosheets (GNs) on the morphology and electrical property of polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) nanofiberous mats. GNs (0.03 %, 0.05 %, 0.1 %, and 0.3 %) are added to PVA solution, and then electrospun into PVA/GNs nanofiberous mats. A viscosity measurement and electrical conductivity measurement are performed on the samples to determine their properties. The experiment results show that when the content of GNs increases from 0.1 % to 0.3 %, the fiber diameter of PVA/GNs nanofiberous mats increases from 166 nm to 239 nm, the conductivity slightly increases, but the viscosity greatly increases. An increment in viscosity causes the beads to form complete fibers, which is in line with the outcome of scanning electron microscopic (SEM) observation.