Fabrication and Characterization of Electrospun Wool Nanoparticles/Nylon 6 Composite Nanofiber Yarn

The present study attempts to combine the properties of natural and synthetic fibers by using nanotechnology. considering the potential of nylon nanofiber structures in some applications such as controlled drug release, moisture microsensors and antibacterial filters, the moisture absorption of the nanofibers could be improved via using biocompatible natural fibers such as wool. in this investigation, it was achieved to produce yarns of composite nylon 6 nanofibers, incorporating wool nanoparticles (wnps), via electrospinning. wnps were added to the electrospinning solution of nylon 6 in various concentrations. scanning electron microscopy was employed to characterize the morphology of composite nanofibers. the existence of wnps in the nanofibers was confirmed by transmission electron microscopy. fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (ftir) spectra showed that nanofibrous composite formation did not influence the chemical bonds of both the wool nanoparticles and nylon 6, and no new steady bonds were formed. it was found that an increase in the wnps concentration increased the diameter of composite nanofibers from 152±16 nm (pure nanofibers) to 266±51 nm (7 wt% nanoparticles). the assessment of moisture regain of composite nanofiber yarns showed that the moisture absorption of nylon 6 nanofibers improved by introducing the wnps as hydrophilic components. the moisture regain of the composite nanofibers yarn containing 7 wt% nanoparticles was found to be higher than that of the pure nanofibers yarn by about 117.1%. on the other hand, tensile strength and elongation-at-break of composite nanofiber yarns initially decreased and then increased with the increase in wnps concentration.