Electrospun PEO/Chitosan Nanofibers Templated with Gold Nanoparticles Prepared with Laser and Wet Synthesis

Hybrid nanofibers are emerging as one of the solutions to unite two modalities (organic and in-organic) widely found in nature, rarely engineered at small length scale; due to restrictions like wide array of physical, chemical properties, range of processing environments; these modalities feature seldom in applications. Hybrid nanofibers enables overcoming these restrictions by combining many dissimilar modalities thereby, incorporating functionalities of those dissimilar modalities into a single structure. Therefore, efficiently fabricating a multifunctional hybrid system with applications not limited by processing environments or range of properties. Additionally, multifunctionality, porosity, high surface to volume ratio provide hybrid nanofibers as an alternative for wide biomedical as well as other applications like filtration, tissue engineering among others. Electrospinning enables fabrication of nonwoven nanofibers ranging from few hundred nanometers to microns. Functional modalities like nanoparticles, dendrimers, proteins could be fabricated in polymer matrix. One such process being used here employs Poly (ethylene oxide), chitosan as matrix with gold nanoparticles as functional elements. The gold nanoparticles have been synthesized by laser ablation and by Turkevich's method [1]. With continuation to previous study the fibers have been prepared and analyzed with higher concentration of chitosan and then electrospun to produce nanofibers averaging 300 nm. With potential such as high contrast for biological imaging, induced hyperthermia and drug loading modalities. The fibers were then characterized to distinguish them from pristine fibers. Various techniques used includes TGA, DSC, FTIR.