Considerably improved water and oil washability of highly conductive stretchable fibers by chemical functionalization with fluorinated silane

Abstract

The chemical functionalization with fluorinated silane provides considerably improved water and oil washability of highly conductive stretchable nanocomposite fibers.

Significantly Enhanced Mechanical Strength by the Hollow Structure of Conductive Stretchable Silver Nanoflower‐Polyurethane Fibers

“…[16,17] Various approaches have been explored to synthesize flexible/stretchable conductive films and fibers, including metallic wires, conducting polymer threads, [18] carbon-based fibers, [19,20] carbon nanotube (CNT) fibers, [21,22] graphene fibers, [23,24] and nanocomposite fibers. [2,4,25] Silver nanowires and their composites, [26] electrospun carbon nanofibers, [27] and electrospun metal-carbide nanofibers [28] have also been actively investigated for conductive films and fibers. However, the practical industrial employment of these fibers has been impeded by the tradeoff between electrical and mechanical properties.…”

“…[4] The electrical conductivity increased as the nanoparticle concentration increased. [2,4,25] However, the mechanical flexibility and durability were compromised at the excessive filler concentration due to the non-uniform distribution and massive aggregation of the fillers. [2,4] It is still challenging to simultaneously achieve the high electrical conductivity, flexibility, and strength of the nanocomposite films and fibers.…”

“…The flower-shaped Ag nanoparticles were named Ag nanoflowers (AgNFPs) in previous works. [4,25,32] The AgNFPs have unique anisotropic geometry consisting of thin nanoscale petals (9-22 nm) protruding out of the spherical bud (250-580 nm). [25,32] The thin petals of the AgNFPs increased surface area, facilitating active coalescence among AgNFPs.…”

“…[4,25,32] The AgNFPs have unique anisotropic geometry consisting of thin nanoscale petals (9-22 nm) protruding out of the spherical bud (250-580 nm). [25,32] The thin petals of the AgNFPs increased surface area, facilitating active coalescence among AgNFPs. [32] This, in turn, led to enhanced electrical connectivity with neighboring AgNFPs at a moderate curing temperature.…”

“…It has been used for metal nanoparticle-incorporated nanocomposite fibers, providing high conductivity and stretchability. [2,25] The dope mixture of AgNFPs, PU, and dimethylformamide (DMF) solvent was extruded through a nozzle into a coagulant (aqueous polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) solution, 8 wt%) to synthesize AgNFP-PU fibers by the wet spinning technology. However, AgNFPs blocked the solvent extraction passages, creating voids inside the solid fibers (diameter: 254.9 μm), when a circular nozzle was used for the spinning process.…”