Sustainable Nano-Nonwoven Fabric Production from Recycled Polyamide 6 Waste via Electrospinning: Controlling Characteristics and Comprehensive Analytical Study

This study investigates the recycling of polyamide 6 (PA 6) wastes to produce nonwoven fabrics based on nanofibers (PA-NWNF) to promote sustainable textile solid waste management and generate a novel material with exceptional properties. PA-NWNF characteristics can be controlled by adjusting the electrospinning parameters. A comprehensive characterization will be performed using various analytical techniques, such as scanning electron microscopy (SEM), Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), X-ray diffraction (XRD), Brunauer–Emmett–Teller (BET), and dynamic mechanical analysis (DMA), to evaluate the unique properties as a function of the electrospinning parameters. According to the SEM results, concentrations of 21% are suitable to produce nanofiber with a well-defined morphology, provided that the applied voltage is maintained at 20 kV and the collecting distance is above 10 cm, irrespective of the flow rate in the established protocol. XRD and FTIR analysis indicate a gradual decrease in the α-phase and a simultaneous increase in the γ-phase as the solution concentration increases. Moreover, low applied voltage favored β-form crystallization over γ and α-forms predominant at the higher voltage. DMA and BET data reveal that the elongated droplets formed at lower concentration exhibit a low storage modulus, high damping factor, highest surface area, and smallest pore diameters.