Forced vibration of a heated wire subjected to nucleate boiling.

Vapor bubble nucleation during subcooled boiling on thin strip wire heaters and the resultant vibrations are studied experimentally. The results show how the subcooled boiling-induced vibrations (SBIV) are intrinsically related to the hydrodynamic flow induced near the heated wires. It is shown that the dominant force responsible for the vibrations in this case is imposed by a localized strong hydrodynamic flow rather than by the vapor recoil force. The dominant frequency of SBIV is the fundamental frequency of the wire, regardless of the individual departure frequencies of the nucleating vapor bubbles. The recorded wire vibrations are used to quantify the hydrodynamic flow. It is shown experimentally and theoretically that the flow fades exponentially with distance from the wire.

Controlled Release of Ciprofloxacin from Core-Shell Nanofibers with Monolithic or Blended Core.

Sustained controlled drug release is one of the prominent contributions for more successful treatment outcomes in the case of several diseases. However, the incorporation of hydrophilic drugs into nanofibers, a promising novel delivery system, and achieving a long-term sustained release still pose a challenging task. In this work we demonstrated a robust method of avoiding burst release of drugs and achieving a sustained drug release from 2 to 4 weeks using core-shell nanofibers with poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA) shell and monolithic poly(vinyl alcohol) (PVA) core or a novel type of core-shell nanofibers with blended (PVA and PMMA) core loaded with ciprofloxacin hydrochloride (CIP). It is also shown that, for core-shell nanofibers with monolithic core, drug release can be manipulated by varying flow rate of the core PVA solution, whereas for core-shell nanofibers with blended core, drug release can be manipulated by varying the ratios between PMMA and PVA in the core. During coaxial electrospinning, when the solvent from the core evaporates in concert with the solvent from the shell, the interconnected pores spanning the core and the shell are formed. The release process is found to be desorption-limited and agrees with the two-stage desorption model. Ciprofloxacin-loaded nanofiber mats developed in the present work could be potentially used as local drug delivery systems for treatment of several medical conditions, including periodontal disease and skin, bone, and joint infections.

Long-Term Sustained Ciprofloxacin Release from PMMA and Hydrophilic Polymer Blended Nanofibers.

Nanofibers represent an attractive novel drug delivery system for prolonged and controlled release. However, sustained release of hydrophilic drugs, like ciprofloxacin hydrochloride (CIP), from polymeric nanofibers is not an easy task. The present study investigates the effect of different hydrophobic polymers (PCL and PMMA) alone in monolithic nanofibers or with hydrophilic polymers (PVA, PEO, and chitosan) in blended nanofibers aiming to achieve sustained CIP release. CIP release from PCL nanofibers was 46% and from PMMA just 1.5% over 40 day period. Thus, PMMA holds great promise for modification of CIP release from blended nanofibers. PMMA blends with 10% PEO, PVA, or chitosan were used to electrospin nanofibers from solution in the mixture of acetic and formic acid. These nanofibers exhibited different drug-release profiles: PEO containing nanofiber mats demonstrated high burst effect, chitosan containing mats revealed very slow gradual release, and PVA containing mats yielded smaller burst effect with favorable sustained release. We have also shown that gradual sustain release of antibiotic like CIP can be additionally tuned over 18 days with various blend ratios of PMMA with PVA or chitosan reaching almost 100%. A mathematical model in agreement with the experimental observation revealed that the sustained CIP release from the blended nanofibers corresponded to the two-stage desorption process.

Solution-Blown Poly(hydroxybutyrate) and ε-Poly-l-lysine Submicro- and Microfiber-Based Sustainable Nonwovens with Antimicrobial Activity for Single-Use Applications.

Antimicrobial nonwovens for single use applications (e.g., diapers, sanitary napkins, medical gauze, etc.) are of utmost importance as the first line of defense against bacterial infections. However, the utilization of petrochemical nondegradable polymers in such nonwovens creates sustainability-related issues. Here, sustainable poly(hydroxybutyrate) (PHB) and ε-poly-l-lysine (ε-PLL) submicro- and microfiber-based antimicrobial nonwovens produced by a novel industrially scalable process, solution blowing, have been proposed. In such nonwovens, ε-PLL acts as an active material. In particular, it was found that most of ε-PLL is released within the first hour of deployment, as is desirable for the applications of interest. The submicro- and microfiber mat was tested against C. albicans and E. coli, and it was found that ε-PLL-releasing microfibers result in a significant reduction of bacterial colonies. It was also found that ε-PLL-releasing antimicrobial submicro- and microfiber nonwovens are safe for human cells in fibroblast culture. Mechanical characterization of these nonwovens revealed that, even though they are felt as soft and malleable, they possess sufficient strength, which is desirable in the end-user applications.

Electrospun CNF Supported Ceramics as Electrochemical Catalysts for Water Splitting and Fuel Cell: A Review.

With the per capita growth of energy demand, there is a significant need for alternative and sustainable energy resources. Efficient electrochemical catalysis will play an important role in sustaining that need, and nanomaterials will play a crucial role, owing to their high surface area to volume ratio. Electrospun nanofiber is one of the most promising alternatives for producing such nanostructures. A section of key nano-electrocatalysts comprise of transition metals (TMs) and their derivatives, like oxides, sulfides, phosphides and carbides, etc., as well as their 1D composites with carbonaceous elements, like carbon nanotubes (CNTs) and carbon nanofiber (CNF), to utilize the fruits of TMs' electronic structure, their inherent catalytic capability and the carbon counterparts' stability, and electrical conductivity. In this work, we will discuss about such TM derivatives, mostly TM-based ceramics, grown on the CNF substrates via electrospinning. We will discuss about manufacturing methods, and their electrochemical catalysis performances in regards to energy conversion processes, dealing mostly with water splitting, the metal-air battery fuel cell, etc. This review will help to understand the recent evolution, challenges and future scopes related to electrospun transition metal derivative-based CNFs as electrocatalysts.

Swing-like pool boiling on nano-textured surfaces for microgravity applications related to cooling of high-power microelectronics.

Here, we demonstrate that heat removed in pool boiling from a heater mimicking high-power microelectronics could be used to facilitate a swing-like motion of the heater before being finally dissipated. This swing-like motion could be beneficial for shedding a large vapor bubble that encapsulates high-power heaters in microgravity where buoyancy force is unavailable for vapor bubble removal. The swing-like motion is propelled by vapor bubble recoil, the force which exists irrespective of gravity and buoyancy. We also demonstrate that this force could be significantly enhanced by depositing on the heater surface supersonically blown polymer nanofibers with cross-sectional diameters below 100 nm. These nanofibers provide additional nucleation sites, resulting in much more frequent bubble nucleation and departure, and thus a higher overall vapor recoil force propelling the heater motion. Such nanofibers strongly adhere to the heater surface and withstand prolonged harsh pool boiling. The measured velocity of the model swing-like heater in Novec 7300 fluid is about 1 cm/s.

Flow of suspensions of carbon nanotubes carrying phase change materials through microchannels and heat transfer enhancement.

This work explores the potential of nano-encapsulated phase change materials (PCMs) in applications related to microelectronics cooling. PCMs (wax or meso-erythritol) were encapsulated in carbon nanotubes (CNTs) by a method of self-sustained diffusion at room temperature and pressure. These nano-encapsulated wax nanoparticles alone allowed heat removal over a relatively wide range of temperatures (different waxes have melting temperatures in the range 40-80 °C). On the other hand, nano-encapsulated meso-erythritol nanoparticles allowed heat removal in the range 118-120 °C. The combination of these two PCMs (wax and meso-erythritol) could extend the temperature range to 40-120 °C, when both types of nanoparticles (wax and meso-erythritol intercalated) would be suspended in the same carrier fluid (an oil). The nanoparticles possess a short response time of the order of 10(-7) s. Such nano-encapsulation can also prevent the PCM from sticking to the wall. In this work, experiments with wax-intercalated CNTs, stable aqueous suspensions of CNTs with concentrations up to 3 wt% with and without nano-encapsulated wax were prepared using a surfactant sodium dodecyl benzene sulfonate (NaDDBS). These suspensions were pumped through two channels of 603 µm or 1803 µm in diameter subjected to a constant heat flux at the wall. It was found that the presence of the surfactant in CNT suspensions results in a pseudo-slip at the channel wall which enhances the flow rate at a fixed pressure drop. When aqueous solutions of the surfactant were employed (with no CNTs added), the enhanced convection alone was responsible for a ~2 °C reduction in temperature in comparison with pure water flows. When CNTs with nano-encapsulated wax were added, an additional ~1.90 °C reduction in temperature due to the PCM fusion was observed when using 3 wt% CNT suspensions. In addition, suspensions of meso-erythritol-intercalated CNTs in alpha-olefin oil were used as coolants in flows through the 1803 µm-diameter microchannel. These suspensions (1.5 wt% CNT) revealed a temperature reduction due to the PCM fusion of up to 3.2 °C, and a fusion temperature in the range 118-120 °C.

Inverse-Leidenfrost phenomenon on nanofiber mats on hot surfaces.

The Leidenfrost effect is a technically and industrially important phenomenon that severely restricts heat removal from high-heat-flux surfaces. A simple remedy to the Leidenfrost effect is provided by polymer nanofiber mats created and deposited by electrospinning on stainless steel surfaces. The influence of nanofiber mats on hydrodynamics and cooling efficiency of single drop impact onto hot surfaces has been investigated experimentally. The evolution of the drops has been recorded by a high-speed complimentary metal-oxide semiconductor camera, whereas the cooling temperature was measured by a thermocouple. A remarkable phenomenon was discovered: a mat of polymer nanofibers electrospun onto a heater surface can completely suppress the Leidenfrost effect, thereby increasing the rate of heat removal from the surface to the liquid drops significantly. The "inverse-Leidenfrost" effect is described qualitatively and quantitatively, providing clear physical reasons for the observed behavior.