Formation of titanium dioxide/poly(vinylpyrrolidone) nanostructure composite by changing the flow rate of polymer solution during electrospinning

The synthesis of nanoparticles and nanofibres was carried out by preparing a homogeneous solution of poly(vinylpyrrolidone) (PVP) with titanium dioxide (TiO2), followed by electrospinning. The influence of the solution flow rate was 20, 10, 5 and 1 ml h–1 during the synthesis of the nanostructure polymer/semiconductor composite examine. Raman and photoluminescence analyses confirm the presence of TiO2 anatase phase; both intensity and broadening of peaks are sensitive to the flow rate. X-ray diffraction patterns show sharp and well-defined peaks, which correspond to the anatase phase, also the relative intensity of the peaks varies with the flow rate. Field-emission scanning electron microscope images reveal that nanoparticles were formed initially, which gradually transforms into nanofibres, thus forming a nanostructured composite. The study is the focus on the form of multiple nanostructures that can be easily controlled by changing the solution flow rate during electrospinning. We focused to synthesize both nanoparticles and nanofibres using electrospinning compared to what has been done in previous studies, where only nanofibres have been obtained. We studied the transformation of nanoparticles into nanofibres with respect to change in flow rate; it gives us many options for the fabrication of polymer solar cell layers.