Electrospray Polytetrafluoroethylene Membranes: Effect of Composition and Heat Treatment on Mechanical Properties and Chemical Resistance
4 affiliations
- 1Additive Technologies Center, National Research Tomsk Polytechnic University, Tomsk 634050, Russia
- 2Faculty of Chemistry, National Research Tomsk State University, Tomsk 634050, Russia
- 3Laboratory of Advanced Materials and Technology, National Research Tomsk State University, Tomsk 634050, Russia
- 4Kurnakov Institute of General and Inorganic Chemistry of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Moscow 119991, Russia
Abstract
Electrospray is a promising method for fabricating semipermeable polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) membranes. PTFE membranes are attractive for filtration and separation in harsh environments, but their mechanical properties depend strongly on crystallinity and thermal history. In this work, PTFE/poly(ethylene oxide) (PEO) membranes were fabricated by electrospraying aqueous solutions with PTFE/PEO ratios of 98.8/1.2, 97.5/2.5, 95/5, and 90/10 wt.%. Increasing the PEO content increased the solution viscosity from 43–78 to 124 mPa·s and caused a transition from sphere-based to mixed fiber–sphere morphology. After sintering at 330 °C, PEO was completely removed and the membrane architecture was preserved. Annealing (slow cooling) produced a more developed folded surface, higher crystallinity, and greater shrinkage, whereas quenching (rapid cooling) retained a less ordered structure, lower shrinkage, and generally higher tensile strength and relative elongation. The highest tensile strength (4.12 ± 0.25 MPa) was obtained for the quenched 97.5/2.5 wt.% membrane, and the highest relative elongation (259 ± 16%) for the quenched 90/10 wt.% membrane. Exposure to nitric acid, potassium hydroxide, dimethyl sulfoxide, motor oil, and distilled water at 100 °C for 48 h caused no statistically significant changes in tensile strength or relative elongation. These results demonstrate that electrosprayed PTFE membranes offer tunable morphology and mechanical properties together with high chemical resistance, making them promising for aggressive-media filtration and separation.
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BibTeX
@article{melnik2026electrospray,
title = {{Electrospray Polytetrafluoroethylene Membranes: Effect of Composition and Heat Treatment on Mechanical Properties and Chemical Resistance}},
author = {Evgeniy Melnik and Vladimir Botvin and Kirill Shirin and Valery Svetlichnyi and Aleksandra Golubovskaya and Vyacheslav Buznik and Andrey Yaroslavtsev and Evgeny Bolbasov},
journal = {Polymers},
year = {2026},
month = oct,
doi = {10.3390/polym18202504},
url = {https://www.mdpi.com/2073-4360/18/20/2504},
note = {CC BY 4.0},
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
TI - Electrospray Polytetrafluoroethylene Membranes: Effect of Composition and Heat Treatment on Mechanical Properties and Chemical Resistance
AU - Evgeniy Melnik
AU - Vladimir Botvin
AU - Kirill Shirin
AU - Valery Svetlichnyi
AU - Aleksandra Golubovskaya
AU - Vyacheslav Buznik
AU - Andrey Yaroslavtsev
AU - Evgeny Bolbasov
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/10/01
JO - Polymers
DO - 10.3390/polym18202504
UR - https://www.mdpi.com/2073-4360/18/20/2504
AB - Electrospray is a promising method for fabricating semipermeable polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) membranes. PTFE membranes are attractive for filtration and separation in harsh environments, but their mechanical properties depend strongly on crystallinity and thermal history. In this work, PTFE/poly(ethylene oxide) (PEO) membranes were fabricated by electrospraying aqueous solutions with PTFE/PEO ratios of 98.8/1.2, 97.5/2.5, 95/5, and 90/10 wt.%. Increasing the PEO content increased the solution viscosity from 43–78 to 124 mPa·s and caused a transition from sphere-based to mixed fiber–sphere morphology. After sintering at 330 °C, PEO was completely removed and the membrane architecture was preserved. Annealing (slow cooling) produced a more developed folded surface, higher crystallinity, and greater shrinkage, whereas quenching (rapid cooling) retained a less ordered structure, lower shrinkage, and generally higher tensile strength and relative elongation. The highest tensile strength (4.12 ± 0.25 MPa) was obtained for the quenched 97.5/2.5 wt.% membrane, and the highest relative elongation (259 ± 16%) for the quenched 90/10 wt.% membrane. Exposure to nitric acid, potassium hydroxide, dimethyl sulfoxide, motor oil, and distilled water at 100 °C for 48 h caused no statistically significant changes in tensile strength or relative elongation. These results demonstrate that electrosprayed PTFE membranes offer tunable morphology and mechanical properties together with high chemical resistance, making them promising for aggressive-media filtration and separation.
SN - 2073-4360
ER -