The aim of this study was to mass-produce gelatin nanofibers by spiral-electrospinning and investigate the performance of different cross-linking methods such as glutaraldehyde vapor and liquid phase cross-linking. Compared with conventional single-needle electrospinning, nanofibers produced by spiral-electrospinning were finer and an enhancement of more than 1000 times over the traditionally obtained nanofibers productivity was obtained. The mechanical testing showed the tensile strength of nanofiber membranes increased from 1.33 to 2.60 MPa after glutaraldehyde vapor cross-linking and from 1.33 to 5.08 MPa after liquid phase cross-linking. Moreover, SEM and FTIR analysis indicated the nanofiber membrane obtained by liquid phase cross-linking had better properties and was an ideal material for wound dressing applications. Materials Letters, 2014 The diagram of spiral electrospinning. SEM images of GE nanofibers (a), GE nanofibers by liquid phase cross-linking (b–f, 0.1–3 M), GE nanofibers by vapor phase (g–k, 0.1–3.0 M) and after rinsing in water (a′–k′).
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