Electrospinning of Nanofibers for Tissue Engineering Applications

Figure 1

Schematic of a typical electrospinning system. A polymer solution is forced through a needle using a syringe pump. The needle is connected to a high-voltage DC supply, which injects charge of a certain polarity into the polymer solution. If the electrostatic force created by the repulsion of similar charges is sufficient to overcome the surface tension of the polymer solution, the Taylor cone is formed and a fiber jet is emitted from its apex. While the fiber jet is traveling toward the grounded collector it undergoes a chaotic whipping instability. The fiber jet is then deposited on the collector, which can be rotating and translating as depicted here [11].