Abstract:

Electrospun silk fibroin fiber mats have some drawbacks, such as instability in water and poor mechanical properties, that limit its applications. The acid treated MWNTs were dispersed in silk fibroin/formic acid to reinforce the electrospun silk nanofibers. XPS analysis indicated that MWNTs not only mixed with silk matrix physically but formed certain chemical bonds with it, thus reinforcing the matrix. With the increase of mass concentration of MWNTs, the microstructure of the fiber was improved and the regularity inside the fiber was enhanced. When the mass concentration of the MWNTs was less than 1%, the fracture strength and initial modulus of composite fiber mat were increased significantly with the increasing of mass fraction of MWNTs. But if the mass concentration of MWNTs was too high, the mechanical property would be deteriorated.