Production of electrospun gelatin nanofibers: an optimization study by using Taguchi's methodology

Electrospinning of gelatin from its solution with a non-toxic solvent is not easy. It certainly requires understanding the effects of critical parameters during electrospinning. In this paper, the first aim was to understand how the morphology and diameter of fibers produced from a solution of gelatin in acetic acid (HAc) were affected by solvent concentration and process parameters (flow-rate, applied voltage, distance between the needle-tip and collector) by using Taguchi's orthogonal design. For this purpose, the optimum levels of factors were determined as follows: voltage 18 kV, flow rate 15 µ l min⁻¹, distance 12.5 cm, and HAc concentration 20% in order to obtain the thinnest nanofiber. Secondly, this combination was further validated by conducting a confirmatory experiment using five different gelatin concentrations to observe the effect of concentration. The average diameters of fibers with 24 and 28% gelatin concentrations were found as similar to the optimum conditions estimated, proving the applicability of Taguchi's method for electrospinning optimization. (paper)