KR101178645B1 - Spinning Nozzle Pack for Electrospinning - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention relates to an electrospinning spinning nozzle pack and an electrospinning apparatus having the same, and more particularly, an inlet for introducing a spinning material; And a spinning nozzle member connected to a lower portion of the inlet and including a porous nozzle plate having a plurality of spinnerets perforated to discharge the introduced spinning material in the form of filaments, wherein the spinning nozzle pack comprises: The member includes a recess surrounding the spinneret on the bottom outside of each of the plurality of spinnerets to prevent drip formation of the solution or molten polymer discharged from the spinneret and facilitate drop formation. It is possible to provide an electrospinning spinning nozzle pack that can increase the reliability and improve productivity.

Description

Spinning Nozzle Pack for Electrospinning

The present invention relates to an electrospinning spinning nozzle pack for producing an ultrafine fiber and an electrospinning apparatus having the same, and more particularly, to an electrospinning apparatus having a spinning nozzle pack improved to be suitable for commercialization of electrospinning. will be.

Electrospinning (Electrospinning) is a technology for producing a fine diameter fiber by spinning the spinning material in a charged state, recently used as a technology for producing nanometer-class fibers, the research is actively progressed.

The electrospinning method is a method of producing a fine fiber by applying a voltage to the spinning nozzle to discharge the charged spinning material into the air through the spinning nozzle, and then stretching the charged filament and branching of another filament in the air. In other words, the charged discharge filament is made extremely fine through severe fluctuations due to electrical effects such as mutual repulsion within the electric field formed between the spinning nozzle and the collector.

Fibers produced by electrospinning have a diameter ranging from micrometers to nanometers, which in turn exhibits completely new properties. For example, an increase in the ratio of the surface area to the volume, an improvement in surface functionality, and an improvement in mechanical properties including tension. These superior properties allow nanofibers to be used in many important applications. For example, the web composed of such nanofibers is a membrane-type material having a porosity and can be applied to various fields such as various filters, wound dressings, and artificial supports.

In the physical properties of the fibers produced by electrospinning, the design of the nozzle from which the solution or the molten polymer is discharged during the electrospinning is very important. This is because the shape, size and length of the fiber may vary depending on the design of the nozzle, and accordingly, the fiber is manufactured by adjusting the L / D of the nozzle hole (radiator), the diameter size, and the like. I've taken a way of blowing them together.

However, some of the conventional methods require a complicated and separate device, and thus, a need for a simpler device for efficient mass production is required, and a drip that aggregates the discharge liquid when discharging the solution or the molten polymer is generated. In order to solve the problem of the phenomenon, the development of a device that can control the physical properties of the electrospun fiber and improve the mechanical properties for the commercialization of electrospinning is required.

One problem to be solved by the present invention is a new type of electrospinning spinning nozzle pack capable of stably inducing drop generation and preventing drip generation of fibers radiated from the spinning nozzle in electrospinning. To provide.

Another object of the present invention is to provide an electrospinning device including an electrospinning spinning nozzle pack.

One aspect of the present invention for achieving the above object,

An electrospinning spinning nozzle pack comprising: an inlet for introducing a spinning material; And a spinning nozzle member connected to a lower portion of the inlet, and including a porous nozzle plate having a plurality of spinnerets for discharging the introduced spinning material in the form of filaments, wherein the spinning nozzle member has a lower portion of each of the plurality of spinnerets. It relates to an electrospinning spinning nozzle pack comprising a recess surrounding the spinneret on the outside.

A recess is formed by forming a groove to have a predetermined depth in a portion except for a nozzle end tip that surrounds a lower outer side of each spinneret of the porous nozzle plate to a predetermined thickness. The syringe needle type, which is easy to form a drop, can suppress the formation of drips on the surface when discharging a solution or molten polymer, and provide an advantage suitable for mass production.

Another aspect of the present invention for achieving the above object is a raw material supply unit for supplying a spinning material to be a fiber raw material; A spinning nozzle pack connected to the raw material supply unit and including a spinning nozzle member receiving the spinning material from the raw material supply unit and discharging the raw material into a filament form; A voltage applying unit for charging a spinning material by applying a predetermined voltage to the spinning nozzle pack; And a collector positioned at a lower distance from the spinning nozzle pack at a predetermined distance, and configured to collect a charged filament discharged through the spinning nozzle member on an upper surface thereof.

The electrospinning device according to the present invention may be used for solution spinning or melt spinning, and the raw material supply part may include an extruder which extrudes and spuns the polymer material to be a fiber raw material, and together with the extruder, the phase change of the polymer material is used. Can be induced.

According to the embodiments of the present invention, a drip is generated when the ejection liquid is agglomerated when the solution or the molten polymer is ejected at the spinneret end of the spinning nozzle member by a simple device without any additional complicated additional device in electrospinning. It is possible to provide a device suitable for a mass production system that can solve the problems of the phenomenon and at the same time solve the management difficulties such as cleaning and storage.

1 is a schematic cross-sectional view and a partially enlarged view of an electrospinning spinning nozzle pack according to an embodiment of the present invention.
Figure 2 is a bottom view of the electrospinning spinning nozzle member according to an embodiment of the present invention.
Figure 3 is a schematic cross-sectional view of the electrospinning spinning nozzle pack according to another embodiment of the present invention.

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in more detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. In the following description of the present invention, a detailed description of known general functions or configurations will be omitted. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS The accompanying drawings are schematic for the purpose of better understanding of the present invention, and parts irrelevant to the description are omitted in order to more clearly describe the present invention, and in order to clearly express various layers and regions in the drawings, the thicknesses are enlarged. The scope of the present invention is not limited by the thickness, size, ratio, etc. shown in the drawings.

One embodiment of the present invention relates to a new type of electrospinning spinning nozzle pack that is more simplified than the conventional complex electrospinning.

1 is a schematic cross-sectional view and a partial enlarged view of an electrospinning spinning nozzle pack according to an embodiment of the present invention, Figure 2 is a bottom view of an electrospinning spinning nozzle member according to an embodiment of the present invention.

1 and 2, the electrospinning spinning nozzle pack according to an embodiment of the present invention includes an inlet 110 into which the spinning material is introduced; Is connected to the lower portion of the inlet 110, and comprises a spinning nozzle member including a porous nozzle plate 120 is a plurality of spinneret 130 for discharging the introduced spinning material in the form of filaments, The nozzle member is characterized in that it comprises a recess 140 surrounding the spinneret 130 on the lower outer side of each of the plurality of spinneret (130).

Electrospinning is based on the principle that when a drop is formed by the surface tension at the end where the solution or the molten polymer is discharged, a voltage is applied to overcome the surface tension. The shape of the discharge part most suitable for such electrospinning is the needle type of the syringe. However, since the syringe-shaped nozzle is difficult to manufacture and manage in a mass production system, a hole type having a plurality of spinnerets is suitable for a plate having a constant size and thickness in a mass production system.

However, in the case where the plurality of spinnerets are perforated, the surface of the end to be radiated is flat, so that the solution or molten polymer is formed in the form of drip instead of drop at the end from which the solution is discharged. It has been found that there is a problem. Particularly, when the viscosity is high, it is recognized that there is a problem that the degree of drip generation is further increased, and in order to improve this, the spinneret 130 is surrounded by the bottom of the end of the spinneret 130 perforated in the porous nozzle plate 120. Forming a recess 140 in the nozzle plate 120 so that the end shape of each spinneret 130 can have the same effect as the syringe needle shape, that is, the tip shape. A configuration was introduced.

The recess 140 is disposed on the bottom outside of each of the spinnerets 130 drilled in the longitudinal direction of the porous nozzle plate 120 toward the inside of the length of the porous nozzle plate 120. Is a groove formed to have a predetermined depth except for the nozzle end tip 150 that surrounds a predetermined thickness. In the case of the spinning nozzle member having such a shape, a drop is easily generated when discharging a solution or a molten polymer. There is no problem such as drip generation, and there is no difficulty in management such as cleaning and storage of the spinning nozzle member.

The recess 140 may be formed to have a depth of 1 to 10 mm from the bottom of the porous nozzle plate 120. If the depth D of the recess 140 is shorter than 1 mm or the width W of the recess is narrower than the drop size of the polymer, the solution or polymer may be aspirated. It must be designed accordingly.

Inlet 110 is a portion in which the spinning material is introduced into the nozzle, it may be composed of a cylindrical inlet and a diffusion portion having a shape gradually widening in the distal direction in order to ensure that the spinning material is uniformly supplied to the plurality of nozzles. However, it is not limited thereto. The inlet 110 is composed of a material having a low thermal modulus among metal materials in order to minimize thermal deformation, for example, stainless steel, special steel, carbon steel, cemented carbide, but is not limited thereto.

The spinning material usable in the embodiments of the present invention may use a polymer solution, a polymer melt, a dissolved glass material, and a mixture thereof in which a melt of the polymer material for melt spinning or a polymer material for solution spinning is dissolved. .

The spinning nozzle member comprises a porous nozzle plate 120, the porous nozzle plate 120 is discharged into the air through the nozzle 130, the charged spinning material is a spinneret, and then stretching the charged filament in the air And it serves to make the microfiber through the branch of another filament.

Porous nozzle plate 120 can be produced by drilling a plurality of nozzle-shaped holes in a plate of a predetermined thickness is suitable for equipment for mass production, it is easy to manufacture equipment. The spinneret 130 perforated on the porous nozzle plate 120 may have various shapes. For example, as shown in FIG. 1, the spinneret 130 is formed from an upper portion contacting the inlet 110. It can be drilled in the shape of a syringe towards the bottom in the opposite direction.

The porous nozzle plate 120 may be manufactured by forming the spinneret 130 on a plate selected from stainless steel, special steel, carbon steel, cemented carbide, and the like, capable of withstanding heat among metal materials for forming a nozzle plate having a predetermined thickness. The thickness of the porous nozzle plate may be 18 to 70 mm, but is not limited thereto.

At this time, the cross-sectional shape of the spinneret 130 may be, for example, circular, square or rectangular, and thus the overall shape of the spinneret 130 is narrow below the cone and the cone under the cylindrical base bearing. The cylindrical shape may be combined or a rectangular pyramid and a narrow rectangular parallelepiped beneath the rectangular pyramid beneath the rectangular parallelepiped, but are not limited thereto, and may have a streamlined cross section if necessary.

The shape of the spinneret 130 formed on the porous nozzle plate 120 of the present invention is not limited to the shape given above, but may have other shapes as necessary.

The spinning nozzle pack according to the embodiments of the present invention may employ any component necessary for the spinning nozzle other than the inlet 110 and the porous nozzle plate 120 without limitation. Figure 3 is a schematic cross-sectional view of the electrospinning spinning nozzle pack according to another embodiment of the present invention. Referring to FIG. 3, the electrospinning spinning nozzle pack further includes a filter plate 111 that removes impurities of the emissive material between the inlet 110 and the porous nozzle plate 120, or inflows. It may further include a distribution control plate 112 that serves to help uniform redistribution of the radiated material, and may include both the filter plate 111 and the distribution control plate 112.

The filter plate 111 may be formed by stacking one or more mesh filters different from each other, and a mesh-shaped mesh filter removes impurities included in the spinning material and distributes and distributes pressure when the spinning material is introduced. . The filter plate 111 may use any material generally used in the art without limitation, and for example, a double mesh filter or a triple mesh filter may be stacked, and the number of meshes of the mesh filters may be different from each other. It is preferable.

The lower portion of the filter plate 111 is connected to the distribution control plate 112 to help uniform redistribution of the spinning material. Distribution control plate 112 is a plurality of holes are perforated in one or more columns and rows. The distribution control plate 112 may be formed by puncturing a material selected from the group consisting of metals, plastics, ceramic compounds, and the like, and the number of holes formed in the distribution control plate 112 may be smaller or larger than the number of nozzles. Due to the presence of the distribution control plate 112 it is possible to produce a web having a uniform fiber thickness by having the spinning material uniformly redistributed without directly flowing into the nozzle to have a quantitatively the same discharge amount for each nozzle.

Electrospinning spinning nozzle pack according to the present invention may include a nozzle block (not shown) for receiving the inlet and the spinning nozzle member to control the temperature of the spinning material. The nozzle block is composed of a double jacket method, so that the temperature of the nozzle block surrounding the spinning nozzle member is controlled as the heat medium flows through the inside of the double jacket, thereby maintaining the temperature of the spinning material, and transferring the temperature to the nozzle from which the fiber is spun. have. Such a nozzle block may be composed of a double jacket to flow the heat medium through the conduits disposed therein. The double jacket may be an aluminum jacket, and the heat medium used in the nozzle block may be heated air, steam, or oil, and a suitable medium may be selected and used at a desired temperature according to the temperature of the spinning material.

In addition, the electrospinning spinning nozzle pack according to the present invention may further include an insulation cover for thermal insulation.

Another aspect of the invention relates to an electrospinning apparatus (not shown) having an electrospinning spinning nozzle pack according to embodiments of the invention.

Electrospinning according to an embodiment of the present invention is a raw material supply unit for supplying a spinning material to be a fiber raw material; A spinning nozzle pack connected to the raw material supply unit and including a spinning nozzle member which receives the spinning material from the raw material supply unit and discharges the filament in the form of filament; A voltage applying unit for charging a spinning material by applying a predetermined voltage to the spinning nozzle pack; And a collector positioned at a lower distance from the spinning nozzle pack at a predetermined distance, and collecting a charged filament discharged through the spinning nozzle member on the upper surface.

At this time, the spinning nozzle pack is connected to the raw material supply portion inlet for the spinning material flows; And a spinning nozzle member connected to a lower portion of the inlet and including a porous nozzle plate having a plurality of spinnerets perforated to discharge the introduced spinning material in the form of filaments, wherein the spinning nozzle member is disposed outside the bottom of each of the plurality of spinnerets. It characterized in that it comprises a recess surrounding the spinneret on the side.

In the electrospinning apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention, the raw material supply part is a part which is supplied with a polymer material, which is a fiber raw material, dissolved in a solvent (solution spinning) or phase-changed into a melt for melt spinning. The raw material supply unit may include heating means for melting the polymer chip and transfer means for transferring the molten polymer melt.

The raw material supply unit is not limited to this configuration, and alternatively, may include a raw material storage tank for storing the polymer to be supplied to the spinning nozzle pack, a metering pump and a supply pipe which is a regulator for supplying the stored polymer in a constant amount per hour.

In one embodiment of the present invention, the raw material supply unit may be connected to the raw material supply unit and may include an extruder for extruding by spinning the polymer material supplied from the raw material supply unit. In the case of melt spinning, such an extruder is required to pressurize a melt having a high viscosity, unlike solution electrospinning, and in particular, by introducing such an extruder, it is possible to supply the spinning material more quickly and is suitable for a multi-nozzle system. This can lead to commercialization.

Preferably, by using a melt extruder as an extruder, the polymer material may be gradually melted by giving a constant temperature gradient in the extruder to eject a predetermined amount to the outside of the extruder using a screw.

Polymeric materials usable in the present invention include polymer chips, polymer solutions, polymer melts, dissolved glass materials, and mixtures thereof. Non-limiting examples of representative polymer materials usable in the present invention include fluoropolymers, polyolefins, polyimides, polylactides, polyesters, polycaprolactones, polyvinylidene fluorides, polyacrylonitriles, polysulfones, polyimides, Polyethylene oxide, polyurethane, elastomer, or rubbers, and these may be used alone or in a mixture of two or more thereof. In addition, in the present invention, other additives may be added to the polymer solution or the molten polymer in order to improve physical properties.

The spinning nozzle pack may be attached to the extruder, but may be designed to be connected through an induction pipe as necessary for the design of the equipment. In this case, the insulated end pipe is made of a ceramic material having the same hole as the induction pipe. By connecting, it is possible to enable insulation between metal installations.

The spinning nozzle pack has a plurality of nozzles for receiving the spinning material and ejecting it in the form of filaments, and is connected to a raw material supply part or an extruder, and an inlet part through which the spinning material flows; And a spinning nozzle member connected to a lower portion of the inlet and including a porous nozzle plate having a plurality of spinnerets perforated to discharge the introduced spinning material in the form of a filament, wherein the spinning nozzle member includes a lower portion of each of the plurality of spinnerets. A recess surrounding the spinneret on the outside.

The spinning nozzle pack is charged with a predetermined voltage to charge the spinning material to form an electric field. The voltage applying unit that plays this role can use any method known in the art without limitation.

The charged filament discharged from the spinneret of the porous nozzle plate of the spinning nozzle member of the spinning nozzle pack is integrated on the collector. As a collector, a metal material having excellent conductivity is used, and it is preferable to continuously supply the spinning nozzle pack with a transfer means such as a transfer roller.

The collector may be grounded or may have a polarity opposite to that of the charged filament due to a polarity opposite to the polarity of the voltage applied to the spinning nozzle pack, thereby helping to accumulate the charged filament. That is, it forms a strong electric field with the polymer material in the form of fine filament that is radiated through the spinning nozzle pack so that the filaments are radiated and integrated into the nano-grade diameter.

On the other hand, the charged filament may be integrated on a nonmetallic substrate such as woven fabric, nonwoven fabric, paper, etc. In this case, the substrate may be positioned and integrated on the front of the collector to form a web, and the substrate on which the web is formed may be moved. It is moved through the means, heated and calendered while passing through the upper and lower heating apparatuses, and finally wound on a winding roller.

On the other hand, in one embodiment of the present invention, the spinning nozzle pack and the collector may be arranged to face in the vertical direction, or may be arranged to face in the horizontal direction.

Nanofibers that can be produced using the electrospinning device of the present invention can be widely applied to filter materials, photochemical sensor materials, electronic device materials, biomedical materials, tissue engineering materials, drug delivery materials and cosmetic materials, etc. Can be. For example, nanofibers have a very good surface area compared to their volume, which makes them excellent for filter applications. When nanofibers with electrical conductivity are made of nanofiber and coated on glass, the color of the window can be detected by detecting the amount of sunlight. Can change. When the conductive nanofiber is used as an electrolyte of a lithium ion battery, the size and weight of the battery can be greatly reduced while preventing leakage of the electrolyte. In addition, if nanofibers are made from artificial proteins that are similar to biological tissues, they can be used for the manufacture of bandages or artificial skins that are immediately absorbed into the body as the wound heals.

Although the preferred embodiments of the present invention have been described with reference to the accompanying drawings, these are merely exemplary, and those skilled in the art to which the present invention pertains various modifications and equivalent other embodiments from this I understand that it is possible. Accordingly, the true scope of the present invention should be determined by the technical idea of the appended claims.

110: inlet 111: filter plate
112: distribution control plate 120: porous nozzle plate
130: spinneret 140: recess
150: nozzle end tip

Claims (12)

In the electrospinning spinning nozzle pack,
An inlet through which the emissive material flows; And
A spinning nozzle member connected to the lower part of the inlet and including a porous nozzle plate having a plurality of spinnerets for discharging the introduced spinning material in the form of filaments,
The spinning nozzle member is characterized in that it comprises a recess (recess) surrounding the spinneret on the lower outer side of each of the plurality of spinneret, electrospinning spinning nozzle pack. delete The electrospinning spinning nozzle pack according to claim 1, wherein the recess is formed from a lower portion of the porous nozzle plate to a point ranging from 1 to 10 mm. The electrospinning method according to claim 1, wherein the porous nozzle plate is manufactured by forming a spinneret on a plate selected from stainless steel, special steel, carbon steel, or cemented carbide, which is a metal material for forming a nozzle plate having a thickness of 18 to 70 mm. Spinning nozzle pack. delete 2. The electrospinning spinning nozzle pack of claim 1, further comprising at least one of a filter plate and a distribution control plate between the inlet bottom and the top of the porous nozzle plate. According to claim 1, comprising a nozzle block for receiving the inlet and the spinning nozzle member, characterized in that the nozzle block is composed of a double jacket to control the temperature of the nozzle block while the heat medium flows through the inside of the double jacket, Electrospinning Spinning Nozzle Pack. The electrospinning spinning nozzle pack according to claim 1, further comprising an insulation cover for thermal insulation. delete delete delete delete

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