ARS | Publication request: Structural, electrical, mechanical and thermal properties of electrospun fibers of poly(lactic acid)/polyaniline blend.

Submitted to: Macromolecular Materials and Engineering
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: April 15, 2010
Publication Date: July 12, 2010
Citation: Picciani, P., Medeiros, E., Pan, Z., Wood, D.F., Orts, W.J., Mattoso, L., Soares, B. 2010. Structural, electrical, mechanical and thermal properties of electrospun fibers of poly(lactic acid)/polyaniline blend.. Macromolecular Materials and Engineering. 295:618-627.

Interpretive Summary: This research studied the structural, electrical, mechanical and thermal properties of elctrospun fibers of poly(lactic acid)/polyaniline blend. The fibers had reduced sizes and new properties.

Technical Abstract: Conducting electrospun fiber mats based on PLA and PAni blends were obtained with average diameter values between 87 and 1 006nm with PAni quantities from 0 to 5.6 wt.-%. Structural characteristics of fiber mats were compared to cast films with the same amount of PAni and studied by SEM, SAXS, and AFM. Thermal properties of fiber mats and cast films were compared by DSC analyses. Mechanical properties of fiber mats were also evaluated. It was found that electrospinning process governs the crystal structure of the fibers and strongly affects fiber properties. New properties of PLA/PAni blends are reported due to the size fiber reduction.