Although electrospun nanofibers are expanding their potential commercial applications in various fields, the issue of energy savings, which are important for cost reduction and technological feasibility, has received little attention to date. In this study, a concentric spinneret with a solid Teflon-core rod was developed to implement an energy-saving electrospinning process. Ketoprofen and polyvinylpyrrolidone (PVP) were used as a model of a poorly water-soluble drug and a filament-forming matrix, respectively, to obtain nanofibrous films via traditional tube-based electrospinning and the proposed solid rod-based electrospinning method. The functional performances of the films were compared through in vitro drug dissolution experiments and ex vivo sublingual drug permeation tests. Results demonstrated that both types of nanofibrous films do not significantly differ in terms of medical applications. However, the new process required only 53.9% of the energy consumed by the traditional method. This achievement was realized by the introduction of several engineering improvements based on applied surface modifications, such as a less energy dispersive air-epoxy resin surface of the spinneret, a free liquid guiding without backward capillary force of the Teflon-core rod, and a smaller fluid–Teflon adhesive force. Other non-conductive materials could be explored to develop new spinnerets offering good engineering control and energy savings to obtain low-cost electrospun polymeric nanofibers.

As a new kind of water pollutant, antibiotics have encouraged researchers to develop new treatment technologies. Electrospun fiber membrane shows excellent benefits in antibiotic removal in water due to its advantages of large specific surface area, high porosity, good connectivity, easy surface modification and new functions. This review introduces the four aspects of electrospinning technology, namely, initial development history, working principle, influencing factors and process types. The preparation technologies of electrospun functional fiber membranes are then summarized. Finally, recent studies about antibiotic removal by electrospun functional fiber membrane are reviewed from three aspects, namely, adsorption, photocatalysis and biodegradation. Future research demand is also recommended.

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