Investigation of the electrospinning parameters on the diameter of the polyvinylpyrrolidone nanofibers containing silver nanoparticles using Box-Behnken design

Abstract

Nanofibers with antibacterial properties have gained great attention especially in biomedical applications where bacterial contamination should be prevented. In this study, it is aimed to produce antibacterial polyvinylpyrrolidone (PVP) nanofibers containing silver nanoparticles with electrospinning technique. In order to investigate the effects of electrospinning parameters such as, applied voltage, flow rate and tip to collector distance on fiber diameter, Box Behnken design technique was employed. SEM images were used to determine average fiber diameter. Based on the results of the statistical analysis, a model equation was developed that establishes a relationship between the electrospinning parameters and the fiber diameter. The adequacy and accuracy of the model equation were verified by residual graphs and validation experiments. The occurrence of the minimum and maximum fiber diameter areas were determined by the aid of contour and surface plots.