Optimized Loading of TiO2 Nanoparticles into Electrospun Polyacrylonitrile and Cellulose Acetate Polymer Fibers

Polyacrylonitrile (PAN), cellulose acetate (CA), PAN-TiO2, and CA-TiO2 nanofibers were prepared using the electrospinning technique under varying the loading of the TiO2 nanoparticles. The latter TiO2 nanoparticles were prepared using the sol-gel method by varying the calcination temperatures. The absorption and emission spectra illustrated the formation of TiO2 nanoparticles with an increase in absorption band edges with smaller particles. The TEM results showed the spherical morphology of the nanoparticles calcined at 500°C with an average diameter of 12.2±3.3 nm. XRD analysis revealed anatase phase as the dominant crystalline phase of the nanoparticles. TiO2 nanoparticle loadings of 0.2 and 0.4 wt% were incorporated into 16 wt% CA solutions while 1, 2, and 3 wt% of TiO2 nanoparticles were incorporated into 10 wt% PAN solutions. The SEM results illustrated the lowering in diameter and morphology of the nanofibers upon incorporation of nanoparticles. Their respective average diameters are 220, 338, 181, and 250 nm for PAN, CA, PAN-TiO2, and CA-TiO2 polymer fibers, respectively. The morphology of the nanofibers improved while the diameter increased with an increase in polymer concentration. Different loadings of TiO2 nanoparticles improved the electrospinnability and morphology and further decreased the size of the nanofibers. FTIR spectroscopy signifies the formation of nanocomposites and the presence of TiO2 nanoparticles which corresponded to the Ti-O stretching and Ti-O-Ti bands on the FTIR spectra