TECHNOLOGY SUMMARY

There is a growing interest in efficient and economical methods and devices for manufacturing nanofibers composed of a wide range of materials. However, the accessibility of nanofiber materials is limited because the production of polymer nanofibers is generally challenging using conventional extrusion methods. While recent advancements have led to new manufacturing techniques such as electrospinning, it requires high electrical voltage and a polar solvent system. To improve on the current nanofabrication methods, an automated track spinning system was developed to be more energy efficient and solvent versatile. The system is based on a simple manual fiber drawing process that is automated by using two oppositely rotating tracks. Fibers are continuously spun by direct contact of polymer solution coated tracks followed by mechanical drawing as the distance between the tracks increases. The track spinning method is able to form fibers from high viscosity solutions and melts that are not compatible with some other nanofiber fabrication methods. Further, the setup is simple and inexpensive to implement, nozzle-less, does not require an electric field or high-velocity jets, and the tracks can be patterned/textured for aligned fiber arrays to scale up fiber yield.

AREA/MATURITY/AWARDS

Primary Application Area: Manufacturing, Instrumentation

Technology Development Status: Prototype

Technology Readiness Level: TRL 4

Vetted Programs/Awards: TechConnect

SHOWCASE SUMMARY

Organization Type: Academic/Gov Lab

Showcase Booth #: 411

GOVT/EXTERNAL FUNDING SOURCES

External Funding to Date: National Science Foundation (NSF), Army Research Laboratory (ARL) and the Dept. of Biomedical Engineering at Rowan University