Preparation and characterization of poly(vinyl alcohol)/graphene nanofibers synthesized by electrospinning

• Production of hollow fibers by electrospining technique.
• Filling of the hollow fibers by the addition of graphene materials as nanofillers.
• The addition of graphene decreases the size of the fibers.
• The thermal stability of the fibers was also improved with the addition of graphene.

We report on the synthesis and characterization of electrospun polyvinyl alcohol (PVA)/graphene nanofibers. The samples produced were characterized by Raman spectroscopy for structural and defect density analysis, scanning electron microscopy (SEM) for morphological analysis, and thermogravimetric (TGA) for thermal analysis. SEM measurements show uniform hollow PVA fibers formation and excellent graphene dispersion within the fibers, while TGA measurements show the improved thermal stability of PVA in the presence of graphene. The synthesized polymer reinforced nanofibers have potential to serve in many different applications such as thermal management, supercapacitor electrodes and biomedical materials for drug delivery.