Electro-active nanofibres electrospun from blends of poly-vinyl cinnamate and a cholesteric liquid crystalline silicone polymer

Electrospinning was used to generate polymer nanofibres from blends of poly-vinyl cinnamate (PVCN) and a cholesteric silicone polymer. Only blends that contained at least 40 % of PVCN produced fibres. Both differential scanning calorimetry and electron dispersion spectroscopy data indicate that the samples are miscible over a wide temperature interval. The variation of fibre diameter with concentration is nonlinear with a well-defined minimum corresponding to an 80 % PVCN blend. The fibres are birefringent with Kerr constants similar to that of cholesteric liquid crystals. Although not significant, the Kerr constant increases with increasing silicone polymer concentration

Modifying the thermomechanical properties of electrospun fibres of poly‑vinyl cinnamate by photo‑cross‑linking

We explore the effects of cross-linking on some thermal and mechanical properties of polymer nanofibers of poly-vinyl cinnamate which were electro-spun from 1,2 dichloroethane. Scanning electron microscopy performed on the fibres revealed smooth fibres which were devoid of beading or ribbon-type features. When cross-linked, the Young’s moduli and glass transition temperatures of the fibres increase, owing to the formation of new covalent bonds which leads to higher overall binding energies. The glass transition temperatures increased by 20 K after 1 h of photo-polymerization while the Young’s modulus increased by 50% for the same exposure time. The glass transition temperatures as well as the heats of enthalpy indicate that a significant portion of cross-linking occurs within the first 10 min of exposure