Abstract
Meta-aramid exhibits excellent chemical stability and mechanical strength owing to its rigid crystal structure. However, the crystal structure is destroyed when meta-aramid nanofibers (mANFs) are fabricated by electrospinning, which results in nanofibers with poor performance characteristics. Here, we present a facile solvent-assisted heat treatment for the efficient crystallization of mANFs. The optimal volume ratio of the co-solvent solution was determined to be 6:5:100 (DMAc:ethylene glycol:water), and the optimal crystallization temperature 120 °C. The crystallinity of the mANFs obtained under these optimized conditions (mANF-6-120) is higher than the crystallinity of mANFs heat-treated at 300 °C (mANF-HT). As a result, mANF-6-120 exhibits superior chemical stability and mechanical strength compared to mANF-HT. After immersion in DMAc for 48 h, the weight of mANF-6-120 is reduced to 28% of its original weight, whereas the relative remaining weight of mANF-HT is less than 8%. The value of Young’s modulus of mANF-6-120 is 1.7 times higher than that of mANF-HT. The crystallization process developed in this study requires less energy and is less expensive than the conventional high-temperature heat treatment process. The meta-aramid nanofiber mat obtained using the proposed process shows great promise for application to water purification and the treatment of polluted air.
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