Electrospinning device and nanofiber manufacturing device provided with same

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10501868-B2
Application number	US-201314435058-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Oct 8, 2013
Priority date	Oct 11, 2012
Publication date	Dec 10, 2019
Grant date	Dec 10, 2019

Abstract

An electrospinning device 1 includes an electrode 10 having a concave curved surface 11 and a needle-shaped spinning nozzle 20 surrounded by the concave curved surface 11 of the electrode 10. With an electric field applied between the electrode 10 and the nozzle 20, a spinning solution is jetted from the tip of the nozzle 20 to form a nanofiber. The nozzle 20 is located such that the direction in which the nozzle 20 extends passes through or near the center of a circle defined by the open end of the concave curved surface 11 of the electrode 10 and that the tip 20a of the nozzle 20 is positioned in or near the plane including the circle defined by the open end.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. An electrospinning device comprising an electrode having a concave curved surface on an inner wall, wherein the concave curved surface is curved at every portion, and a needle-shaped spinning nozzle surrounded by the concave curved surface of the electrode and being configured to jet a spinning solution from a tip of the nozzle with an electric field applied between the electrode and the nozzle to form a nanofiber from the jetted spinning solution,
the concave curved surface of the electrode having an open end defining a circle, with:
the nozzle being located in such a manner that a direction in which the nozzle extends passes through the center of said circle defined by the open end of the concave curved surface of the electrode, and that the tip of the nozzle is positioned in a plane including the circle defined by the open end of the concave curved surface of the electrode, or is positioned inside the concave curved surface from said plane;
wherein the electrode and the nozzle are electrically insulated from each other by a support, and
wherein the concave curved surface has a shape of a true hemispherical shell.

2. The electrospinning device according to claim 1 , wherein the concave curved surface is a concave, curved surface that is formed by connecting a plurality of segments each having a flat surface, or is a concave, curved surface that is formed by connecting a plurality of annular segments each having a belt-like portion with no curvature on one of three perpendicular axes.

3. The electrospinning device according to claim 1 , wherein the nozzle is divided into a plurality of sections in its transverse cross-section, and the spinning solution is to flow through each of the plurality of sections.

4. The electrospinning device according to claim 1 , wherein the direction in which the nozzle extends passes through the center of the circle defined by the open end of the concave curved surface of the electrode, and passes through a bottom of the concave curved surface, or
the direction in which the nozzle extends passes through the center of the circle defined by the open end of the concave curved surface of the electrode, and passes through the bottom of the concave curved surface.

5. The electrospinning device according to claim 1 , wherein the tip of the nozzle is positioned in a plane containing the circle, or is positioned inside of the concave curved surface from the plane.

6. The electrospinning device according to claim 1 , wherein a gas jetting part is positioned adjacent to a base of the nozzle of the electrospinning device and configured to jet a gas stream along a direction, in which the nozzle extends, toward the tip of the nozzle.

7. An electrospinning device comprising an electrode having a concave curved surface on an inner wall, wherein the concave curved surface is curved at every portion, and a needle-shaped spinning nozzle surrounded by the concave curved surface of the electrode and being configured to jet a spinning solution from a tip of the nozzle with an electric field applied between the electrode and the nozzle to form a nanofiber from the jetted spinning solution,
the concave curved surface of the electrode having an open end defining a circle, with:
the nozzle being located in such a manner that a direction in which the nozzle extends passes through the center of said circle defined by the open end of the concave curved surface of the electrode, and
the tip of the nozzle is positioned in a plane including said circle defined by the open end of the concave curved surface of the electrode, or is positioned inside the concave curved surface from said plane;
the concave curved surface has a curvature such that a normal at every position of the concave curved surface passes through the tip of the nozzle; and
wherein the electrode and the nozzle are electrically insulated from each other by a support.

8. An electrospinning device comprising an electrode having a concave curved surface on an inner wall, wherein the concave curved surface has a shape of true hemispherical shell, and a needle-shaped spinning nozzle surrounded by the concave curved surface of the electrode and being configured to jet a spinning solution from a tip of the nozzle with an electric field applied between the electrode and the nozzle to form a nanofiber from the jetted spinning solution,
the concave curved surface of the electrode having an open end defining a circle, with:
(1) the nozzle being located in such a manner that a direction in which the nozzle extends passes through the center of said circle defined by the open end of the concave curved surface of the electrode, and that the tip of the nozzle is positioned in a plane including the circle defined by the open end of the concave curved surface of the electrode, or is positioned inside the concave curved surface from said plane, or
(2) the nozzle being located in such a manner that a direction in which the nozzle extends passes within an imaginary circle, the imaginary circle being drawn on the same plane including said circle defined by the open end of the of the concave curved surface of the electrode, being concentric with said circle, and having a radius of r/5, wherein r is the radius of said circle defined by the open end of the concave curved surface of the electrode, and the tip of the nozzle is positioned in a plane including said circle defined by the open end of the concave curved surface of the electrode, or is positioned inside the concave curved surface from said plane; and
wherein the electrode and the nozzle are electrically insulated from each other by a support.

9. An electrospinning device comprising an electrode having a concave curved surface on an inner wall, wherein the concave curved surface is curved at every portion, and a needle-shaped spinning nozzle surrounded by the concave curved surface of the electrode and being configured to jet a spinning solution from a tip of the nozzle with an electric field applied between the electrode and the nozzle to form a nanofiber from the jetted spinning solution,
the concave curved surface of the electrode having an open end defining a circle, with:
the nozzle being located in such a manner that a direction in which the nozzle extends passes through the center of said circle defined by the open end of the concave curved surface of the electrode, and that the tip of the nozzle is positioned in a plane including the circle defined by the open end of the concave curved surface of the electrode, or is positioned inside the concave curved surface from said plane; and
wherein:
the nozzle is insulated,
said electrode has an inner surface area of 400 mm 2 to 180000 mm 2 ,
said tip of the nozzle contains a metallic part (conductive part) having a surface area of 2 mm 2 to 1000 mm 2 that is exposed to the inner surface area of the electrode, and
a ratio of the said inner surface area of the electrode to the surface area of the tip of the nozzle exposed to the inner surface of the electrode is 30 to 90000.

Assignees

• Kao Corp

Inventors

• Kodama Shinji

Classifications

• D01D5/0076

  characterised by the collecting device, e.g. drum, wheel, endless belt, plate or grid (D01D5/0046 takes precedence) · CPC title

• D01D5/0007

  Electro-spinning (non-woven fabrics produced by electro-spinning D04H1/728) · CPC title

• D04H1/728 Primary

  by electro-spinning {(electro-spinning methods and apparatus D01D5/0007)} · CPC title

• D01D5/0092

  characterised by the electrical field, e.g. combined with a magnetic fields, using biased or alternating fields · CPC title

• D01D5/0061 Primary

  characterised by the electro-spinning apparatus · CPC title