HIGHLY ALIGNED FIBERS – A REVIEW OF MECHANICAL PROPERTIES AND APPLICATIONS AS A FILTER MEMBRANE

Abstract

Electrospun filter membranes show a high surface area to volume ratio and high porosity leading to a wide range of applications. The properties of electrospun membranes depend on the polymer properties such as molecular weight, viscosity, and polymer concentration, and membrane properties such as fiber diameter, and thickness of the membrane. One of the less studied factors that influence electrospun membranes is fiber alignment. Electrospun fibers typically have a random orientation of the fibers. The random orientation of the fibers weakens the mechanical strength of the membrane limiting the applications of the membranes. A few approaches to increase the mechanical strength of the membrane are by producing aligned fibers. In this review paper, different approaches to fabricating highly aligned electrospun fibers are presented.