Polymer nanofibers from electrospinning of complex coacervates, and compositions and methods thereof

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10428444-B2
Application number	US-201715725465-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Oct 5, 2017
Priority date	Oct 11, 2016
Publication date	Oct 1, 2019
Grant date	Oct 1, 2019

Abstract

The invention provides novel polymer nanofiber or microfiber mats or membranes and methods for their preparation via an aqueous, one-step polyelectrolyte complexation and electrospinning of complex coacervates.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A method for making a nanofiber or microfiber by electrospinning, comprising:
providing an aqueous solution comprising a polyanion or macroanion and an aqueous solution comprising a polycation or macrocation;
mixing the aqueous solution comprising a polyanion or macroanion, the aqueous solution comprising a polycation or macrocation, and an aqueous salt solution to form a coacervate suspension;
coalescing the coacervate suspension into a homogeneous coacervate phase; and
electrospinning the coacervate phase to form a nanofiber or microfiber, wherein the nanofiber or microfiber has a diameter in the range from about 0.199 micrometers to about 32 micrometers.

2. The method of claim 1 , further comprising: constructing a mat or membrane from the electrospun nanofiber or microfiber,
wherein charge stoichiometry of the polyanion or macroanion to the polycation or macrocation is about 1.

3. The method of claim 1 , wherein the polycation or macrocation is selected from the group consisting of a peptide or protein, a polysaccharide, a polymer, a nanoparticle, or a charged surfactant molecule or micelle.

4. The method of claim 1 , wherein the polyanion or macroanion is selected from the group consisting of a peptide or protein, a polysaccharide, a polymer, a nucleic acid, a nanoparticle, or a charged surfactant molecule or micelle.

5. The method of claim 2 , wherein the polycation or macrocation comprises poly(diallyldimethyl ammonium).

6. The method of claim 2 , wherein the polyanion or macroanion comprises poly(styrene sulfonate).

7. The method of claim 2 , wherein the salt is KBr.

8. The method of claim 2 , wherein the polycation or macrocation comprises poly(diallyldimethyl ammonium), the polyanion or macroanion comprises poly(styrene sulfonate), and the salt comprises KBr.

9. The method of claim 8 , wherein the salt concentration is in the range from about 1.2 M to about 1.75 M.

10. The method of claim 9 , wherein the polycation or macrocation and the polyanion or macroanion are substantially of equal length.

11. The method of claim 9 , wherein the coacervate preparation comprises no organic solvent.

12. The method of claim 11 , wherein the applied voltage for electrospinning is from about 6 kV to about 20 kV.

Assignees

• Univ Massachusetts
• Univ Of Massachussetts

Inventors

• Meng Xiangxi
• Perry Sarah L
• Schiffman Jessica D

Classifications

• D01F6/44

  from mixtures of polymers obtained by reactions only involving carbon-to-carbon unsaturated bonds as major constituent with other polymers or low-molecular-weight compounds · CPC title

• C08L39/00

  Compositions of homopolymers or copolymers of compounds having one or more unsaturated aliphatic radicals, each having only one carbon-to-carbon double bond, and at least one being terminated by a single or double bond to nitrogen or by a heterocyclic ring containing nitrogen; Compositions of derivatives of such polymers · CPC title

• D01D5/0038 Primary

  the fibre formed by solvent evaporation, i.e. dry electro-spinning · CPC title

• C08L41/00

  Compositions of homopolymers or copolymers of compounds having one or more unsaturated aliphatic radicals, each having only one carbon-to-carbon double bond, and at least one being terminated by a bond to sulfur or by a heterocyclic ring containing sulfur; Compositions of derivatives of such polymers · CPC title

• C08L2205/16

  Fibres; Fibrils · CPC title