Fabricating Highly Ordered Nanofiber Assemblies by Controlled Shear Flow and Solvent Evaporation

TL;DR

This study introduces a simulation-based method combining shear flow and solvent evaporation to produce highly ordered nanofiber assemblies, revealing key parameters for microstructural control.

Contribution

It presents a novel in silico approach using dissipative particle dynamics to understand and guide nanofiber assembly via shear flow and solvent evaporation.

Findings

Microstructural order depends on Peclet number and evaporation flux.

Hydrodynamic coupling and fluctuations influence nanofiber alignment.

Practical setup for fabricating ordered nanofiber assemblies is proposed.

Abstract

Fabrication of highly ordered and dense nanofibers assemblies is of key importance in designing high-performance and multi-functional materials. In this work, we design an experimental approach in silico, combining shear flow and solvent evaporation to establish nanofiber alignment and densification of the assemblies. We demonstrate the feasibility of this approach by performing dissipative particle dynamics simulations, where the hydrodynamic and thermal fluctuation effects are fully modeled. We find that the microstructural order of assembled nanofibers can be established within a specific range of the Peclet number and evaporation flux. The underlying mechanism is elucidated by considering the competition between hydrodynamic coupling and fluctuating dynamics of nanofibers. Based on these understandings, we outline a practical setup to fabricate highly ordered and dense nanofiber assemblies.