Solution blowing is one of the most industrially viable processes for mass production of nanofibers without significant change of trade practices. In this work a novel industrially scalable approach to nanofiber production by solution blowing is demonstrated using Biax die. Blends of biopolymer soy protein isolate Clarisoy 100 and poly­(ethylene oxide) (M w = 600 kDa) were solution blown as aqueous solutions using a spinneret with 8 rows with 41 concentric annular nozzles. Nanofiber mats were collected on a drum, and samples with an area of the order of 0.1–1 m2 were formed in about 10 s. Nanofibers were relatively uniform with the diameters of about 500–600 nm. Theoretical aspects of capillary instability, dripping, and fly formation in solution blowing relevant from the experimental point of view are discussed, as well as ways of their prevention are revealed.

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Solid state electrolytes (SSEs) offer great potential to enable high-performance and safe lithium (Li) batteries. However, the scale-up synthesis and processing of SSEs is a major challenge. In this work, three-dimensional networks of lithium lanthanum titanite (LLTO) nanofibers are produced through a scale-up technique based on solution blowing. Compared with the conventional electrospinning method, the solution blowing technique enables high-speed fabrication of SSEs (e.g., 15 times faster) with superior productivity and quality. Additionally, the room-temperature ionic conductivity of composite polymer electrolytes (CPEs) formed from solution-blown LLTO fibers is 70% higher than the ones formed from electrospun fibers (1.9 × 10 –4 vs 1.1 × 10–4 S cm–1 for 10 wt % LLTO fibers). Furthermore, the cyclability of the CPEs made from solution-blown fibers in the symmetric Li cell is more than 2.5 times that of the CPEs made from electrospun fibers. These comparisons show that solution-blown ion-conductive fibers hold great promise for applications in Li metal batteries.

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