Investigation of the Optimum Electric Field for a Stable Electrospinning Process

Electrospinning is an easy and inexpensive process that produces continuous nanofibers through an electrically charged jet of polymer solution consisting of sufficiently long chain molecules. As reported in the literature, the entire electrospinning process is governed by the external electric field caused by the applied voltage between the electrodes and the induced electric field caused by free and induced charges on the fluid surface. Therefore, the electric field is the most critical parameter in electrospinning. In this work, a comprehensive analysis was carried out to investigate the effects of external and induced electric fields on the electrospinning process, which include the Taylor cone formation, the straight jet portion, and the unstable or whipping jet region. It was observed that all regions are highly influenced by the applied and induced electric fields, which results in a considerable variation in the morphology of the nanofibers.