Issue 44, 2008

Functional nanofibers for environmental applications

Abstract

Nanofibers, mainly fabricated by electrospinning, have exhibited great potential for many emerging environmental applications. They can be considered as one of the safest nanomaterials due to their extremely long length (can be up to hundreds of kilometers) and their ability to be embedded within other media. Their high surface-to-volume ratio, large porosity (up to over 80%) and adjustable functionality are also much more effective than conventional non-woven and polymeric membranes in particulate separation and liquid filtration. Technology advances such as multiple-jet electrospinning and electroblowing for mass production of nanofibers have made it practical to use nanofibrous scaffolds as a unique and breakthrough component in separation media for both gas and liquid filtration. In this review, the opportunities and challenges of using functional nanofibers for several representative environmental applications are reviewed.

Graphical abstract: Functional nanofibers for environmental applications

Article information

Article type
Application
Submitted
10 Mar 2008
Accepted
28 Jul 2008
First published
10 Sep 2008

J. Mater. Chem., 2008,18, 5326-5334

Functional nanofibers for environmental applications

K. Yoon, B. S. Hsiao and B. Chu, J. Mater. Chem., 2008, 18, 5326 DOI: 10.1039/B804128H

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