Tehran University of Medical Sciences

Science Communicator Platform

Stay connected! Follow us on X network (Twitter):
Share this content! On (X network) By
Bio-Based Nanofiber Membranes for Effective Air Filtration: Fabrication and Evaluation of Flame-Retardant Behavior, Mechanical Properties, and Filtration Performance Publisher



Keyvani S1 ; Golbabaei F1 ; Neisiany RE2, 3 ; Das O4 ; Foroushani AR5 ; Kalantary S1
Authors
Show Affiliations
Authors Affiliations
  1. 1. Department of Occupational Health, School of Public Health, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, 1417613151, Iran
  2. 2. Department of Polymer Engineering, Hakim Sabzevari University, Sabzevar, 9617976487, Iran
  3. 3. Biotechnology Centre, Silesian University of Technology, Krzywoustego 8, Gliwice, 44–100, Poland
  4. 4. Department of Civil, Environmental and Natural Resources of Engineering, Lulea University of Technology, Lulea, 97187, Sweden
  5. 5. Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, School of Public Health, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, 1417613151, Iran

Source: Macromolecular Materials and Engineering Published:2025


Abstract

Electrospun nanofibers can lower health risks linked to exposure to particulate matter pollutants. On the other hand, nonbiodegradable polymeric materials increase issues related to their disposal and the generation of hazardous microplastics. Hence, this research aims to develop a nanofibrous membrane filter composed of polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) as a biodegradable polymer, and boric acid (BA) using an electrospinning technique. This study investigates the effect of BA on fire behavior, mechanical properties, and filtration performance of the nanofiber membranes. The morphological results show that the samples containing BA have no beads on the nanofibers. Incorporating boric acid into PVA membranes can reduce peak release heat by ≈39%. Additionally, the nanofibers containing BA can offer enhanced mechanical properties of tensile strain (≈3.6%) and Young's modulus (up to ≈45%). The optimized BA/PVA nanofibers can also demonstrate superior filtration efficiency (above 99.9% for 300 nm particles) and a low-pressure drop (150 Pa at 5.3 cm s−1 airflow velocity). Therefore, PVA nanofibers containing BA can improve not only the fire behavior than those of pure PVA nanofibers, but also increase mechanical properties, and filtration performance. © 2025 The Author(s). Macromolecular Materials and Engineering published by Wiley-VCH GmbH.