Fabrication and characterization of thermochromic material containing poly (vinyl chloride)(PVC) fibers

In this study, poly(vinyl chloride) (PVC) fibers and PVC fibers containing thermochromic material (TM) were produced by electrospinning method. The optimum production conditions of fibers containing different proportions of thermochromic material were determined and the fibers produced under optimum conditions were characterized. Variables taken into account in optimization are solvent type, polymer concentration and electrospinning conditions. Spinning solutions were prepared by mixing dimethylformamide (DMF) and tetrahydrofuran (THF) solvents, which are the most commonly used in PVC fiber production, individually and in a 50/50 ratio. The production of PVC fibers was optimized considering the parameters of the spinning solution, feed rate and applied voltage. Thermochromic material was added into the most optimum spinning solution at different concentrations such as 5-30%. The morphological, mechanical, thermal, thermal dimensional stability and color change properties of the fibers were examined and the usability of the material as a temperature sensor was investigated. Keywords: Poly(vinyl chloride), Thermochromic materials, Electrospinning, Polymer, Fibers