Composite electrospun fly ash/polyurethane fibers for absorption of volatile organic compounds from air

•Cost effective fly ash/PU electrospun nanofibers are fabricated for first time.•Fly ash is effectively loaded to increase the mechanical strength of the mat.•The mat has good VOCs absorption capacity and can apply for air filtration.•The absorption capacity of as-fabricated mat to five hydrocarbons is studied.

This study reports an electrospun fly ash/polyurethane composite fibrous membrane intended for removal of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) from air. Smooth and uniform PU nanofibers loaded with a sufficient amount of commercially available fly ash particles (FAPs) (byproduct of thermal plant) were easily fabricated using blend solution of PU and particles. Electron microscopy and spectroscopy showed that a sufficient amount of FAPs were loaded on/into the PU fibers. The mechanical strength of composite mats was improved (up to certain amount of FAPs on PU) compared to that of the pristine PU mat. Five different VOCs (chloroform, benzene, toluene, xylene, and styrene) were used to measure the absorption capacity of different electrospun mats. The absorption capacity of PU fibers improved with increasing amounts of FAPs in the fibers. Experimental data showed that, among the five VOCs, styrene was the most highly absorbed, regardless composition of PU fibers. PU fibers with 30 wt% FA showed the highest VOC absorption capacity, which was 2.52–2.79 times (for five VOCs) greater than that of pristine PU fibers. The unchanged efficiency of VOC absorption during cyclic use demonstrated the completely reversible absorption and desorption behavior of the mat at room conditions. Results demonstrated that the composite mat is an economically and environmentally-friendly nonwoven matrix for outdoor and indoor VOC filtration.