Preparation and characterization of poly(vinyl alcohol) nanofiber mats crosslinked with blocked isocyanate prepolymer

Poly(vinyl alcohol) (PVA) nanofibers crosslinked with blocked isocyanate prepolymer (BIP) were successfully prepared using the electrospinning process and subsequent thermal treatment. Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy and solid-state ¹³C NMR spectroscopy demonstrated that chemical crosslinks between the hydroxyl group of PVA and the isocyanate group of BIP were formed. Thermogravimetric analysis and differential scanning calorimetry results indicated that when the BIP content was increased, the thermal stability of PVA/BIP nanofibers increased, and the crystallinity of PVA decreased. Field emission scanning electron microscopy was used to measure the average diameter (200-300 nm) of the electrospun PVA/BIP nanofibers. The water contact angles were 10.2° and 113° for the pristine PVA nanofibers and PVA nanofibers crosslinked with 8 wt% BIP, respectively. The tensile strength of the crosslinked PVA nanofibers was 53.7 MPa, which was seven times higher than that of pristine PVA. The improved tensile strength and water resistance of the crosslinked PVA/BIP nanofibers were due to a combination of increased crosslinking density and decrease in the number of hydroxyl groups on the surface of the PVA/BIP nanofibers.