Textile Fiber Microscopy

6Nanofibers

6.1 Nanotechnology in Textiles

The advancement of textiles is marked by inventions; the first synthetic fiber in the twentieth century, the later development of microfibers, and now, in the twenty‐first century, the development and application of nanofibers. The field of nanotechnology has had an impact on many industries, such as material science, optics, medicine, plastics, aerospace, and as well as the textile and apparel industry. Nanofibers exist on a smaller scale than regular fibers or microfibers, with diameters ranging from 1 to 100 nm [1] (see Figures 6.1 and 6.2). Nanofibers are extremely thin and fine fibers. Molecules are said to be the smallest particle, and in comparison to a nanofiber, a molecular chain has a diameter smaller than 1 nm, which is close to the size of a nanofiber [1]. The interest in nanofibers is due to their unique properties, which are basically improvements in chemical, physical, and biological properties due to their nanoscale size [2].

Figure 6.1 Fiber size comparison – regular denier fibers, microfibers, and nanofibers.

Figure 6.2 Pollen from lily flower on nanofibers (750×).

Source: Courtesy of Eva Kuzelova Kostakova. Technical University of Liberec, Liberec, Czech Republic.

Nanofibers have been utilized in the textile industry in the ...