No. | Observation | Possible Cause | Remedy |
---|---|---|---|
1. | No electrospinning jet | Solvent used is non-conductive | Dope solution with higher conductivity or dielectric constant. |
Coagulation at nozzle tip | See point 2. | ||
2. | Coagulation at nozzle tip | Too rapid evaporation | Use solvent of lower boiling point. Dope solution with solvent with higher boiling point. Use gas jacket. Add electrospinnable polymer to form a blend. |
Gelling | Switch to a solvent that does not cause the solution to gel up. Increase voltage. Add electrospinnable polymer to form a blend. Increase solution temperature. Use annular gas jacket to facilitate jet initiation |
||
3. | Visible electrospinning jet but no fibers | Solution concentration or molecular weight is too low | Increase concentration or molecular weight. Use co-axial electrospinning Blend polymer with electrospinnable polymer |
Insufficient viscosity | |||
4. | Visible electrospinning jet but fibers are not depositing on collector | Collector is non-conductive | Replace collector. For thin collector sheet, place conductive electrodes under collector. Blow ionized air on collector |
5. | Multiple jets at nozzle tip | High solution conductivity | Replace solvent with one of lower conductivity. Use smaller diameter nozzle |
6. | Wet fibers | Fibers are not sufficiently dry when deposited. | Switch to more volatile solvents. Increase the distance between nozzle and collector. |
7. | Bundling of electrospinning jet | Polarization of electrical charges on electrospinning jet. | Switch to solvent with lower conductivity. Change collector plate to one that is less conductive. Use a rotating collector. Increase humidity of electrospinning environment. |