Biomimetic Aligned Micro-/Nanofibrous Composite Membranes with Ultrafast Water Transport and Evaporation for Efficient Indoor Humidification

Abstract

Humidifying membranes with ultrafast water transport and evaporation play a vital role in indoor humidification that improves personal comfort and industrial productivity in daily life. However, commercial nonwoven (NW) humidifying membranes show mediocre humidification capability owing to limited wicking capacity, low water absorption, and relatively less water evaporation. Herein, we report a biomimetic micro-/nanofibrous composite membrane with a highly aligned fibrous structure using a humidity-induced electrospinning technique for high-efficiency indoor humidification. Surface wettability and roughness are also tailored to achieve a high degree of superhydrophilicity by embedding hydrophilic silicon dioxide nanoparticles (SiO 2 NPs) into the fiber matrix. The synergistic effect of the highly aligned fibrous structure and surface wettability endows composite membranes with ultrafast water transport and evaporation. Strikingly, the composite membrane exhibits an outstanding wicking height of 19.5 cm, a superior water absorption of 497.7%, a fast evaporation rate of 0.34 mL h −1 , and a relatively low air pressure drop of 14.4 Pa, thereby achieving a remarkable humidification capacity of 514 mL h −1 (57% higher than the commercial NW humidifying membrane). The successful synthesis of this biomimetic micro-/nanofibrous composite membrane provides new insights into the development of micro-/nanofibrous humidifying membranes for personal health and comfort as well as industrial production.

Facile Preparation of PET/PA6 Bicomponent Microfilament Fabrics with Tunable Porosity for Comfortable Medical Protective Clothing

“…Medical protective clothing is a vital medical component utilized to treat patients and safeguard medical personnel in medical places. − Various microfiber fabrics are now being considered for use in medical protective gear due to their desirable properties of a high specific surface area − and high flexibility. , In public health emergencies of worldwide importance, medical protective equipment successfully minimizes the risk of infection through liquid proofing and particle filtration. − However, restriction of comfort performance in poor ventilation and unpleasant contact is difficult to avoid for long-term usage of medical protective garments.…”

Bioinspired self-driven ultra-long-distance anti-gravity water transport device with core-shell and twofold hierarchical structure

“…The quantity, size, and shape of microchannels are the keys to the improvement of water transport height and speed in which the small size and parallel shape of microchannels will generate strong capillary pressure and effectively decrease water ow resistance. 9,15 To construct plenty of parallel continuous microchannels in our device, cellulose acetate (CA)-based nano ber lms (CANF) prepared by electrostatic spinning were selected for their high porosity, small pore size, and great water resistance stability. Then, the CANF were modi ed by water ow-assisted twists to recombine the ber arrangement from disorder to order, and the modi ed CANF contracted into a bundle to form more microchannels between nano bers (Figure S1, Fig.…”

“…8 Chen et al proposed a super-hydrophilicity high-aligned nano ber lm containing silicon dioxide (SiO 2 ) nanoparticles, offering a strong capillary force and advanced water transport height of 190 mm. 9 Wang et al developed a bamboo-joint-like platform with tapered micro-tubes as transport units to create the Laplace pressure and capillary force, resulting in a water transport speed of up to 632.5 µL•min − 1 and a water transport length of 240 mm. 10 These devices, based on the improvement of capillary force and pressure difference, have a maximum water transport height of 370 mm, 4 while trees have the ability to transport water from the ground to the crown with a vertical distance even over 100 meters.…”

Cuttlefish-Bone-Structure-like Lamellar Porous Fiber-Based Ceramics with Enhanced Mechanical Performances

“…As a result of the unique three-dimensional fiber-connection networks, porous fibrous ceramics have a series of outstanding physical and chemical properties, such as high porosity, low thermal conductivity, and excellent high temperature-resistance properties. − Recently, porous fibrous ceramics have been widely applied in various fields, such as energy conservation, recycling industry, and high-temperature thermal insulation. − With the rapid development of technology and industry, higher requirements are put forward for porous fibrous ceramics with comprehensive performances, including low density, low thermal conductivity, and high mechanical properties.…”