Electrospinning evolved as a powerful technology to produce membranes consisting of nano- to micron-scaled fibers offering unique membrane properties due to the extremely high surface-to-volume ratio and high membrane porosity. However, this technology is often far removed from a green and environmentally-friendly process, as it employs solvents with issues such as high flammability, toxicity, difficult disposal, or energy-intensive synthesis. Indeed, the most commonly used solvents in the electrospinning field are halogenated (e.g. chloroform, trifluoroethanol) and toxic solvents (e.g. dimethylformamide), the use of which is now restricted by the Chemical Control Regulation in the European Union (REACH). This is especially important when considering the commercialization of electrospun products due to the more limited solvent choice. In order to render electrospinning more attractive as a commercial technique and further improve scalability, solvent alternatives and other green routes have to be established, which adhere to societal and legal restrictions especially in regard to the environmental and health impact. Therefore, this review provides the current ecological and economical context of this technology, and summarizes recent approaches towards green electrospinning. Since electrospinning from solutions and dispersions constitutes the predominantly used form of this technique both in research and industry, the focus of this work is set on the use of solvents or solvent mixtures classified exclusively by the term “green”. The approaches presented comprehensively cover the production of polymeric fibers via solution, emulsion, suspension, and in situ cross-linking electrospinning.

The COVID-19 pandemic has hugely affected the textile and apparel industry. Besides the negative impact due to supply chain disruptions, drop in demand, liquidity problems, and overstocking, this pandemic was found to be a window of opportunity since it accelerated the ongoing digitalization trends and the use of functional materials in the textile industry. This review paper covers the development of smart and advanced textiles that emerged as a response to the outbreak of SARS-CoV-2. We extensively cover the advancements in developing smart textiles that enable monitoring and sensing through electrospun nanofibers and nanogenerators. Additionally, we focus on improving medical textiles mainly through enhanced antiviral capabilities, which play a crucial role in pandemic prevention, protection, and control. We summarize the challenges that arise from personal protective equipment (PPE) disposal and finally give an overview of new smart textile-based products that emerged in the markets related to the control and spread reduction of SARS-CoV-2.

Electrospun metal oxide–polymer nanofiber composites hold promise for revolutionizing biomedical applications due to their unique combination of electronic and material properties and tailorable functionalities. An investigation into the incorporation of Fe-based nanofillers for optimizing the polyacrylonitrile matrix was conducted, where the systematic and organized arrangement of inorganic components was achieved through non-covalent bonding. These carefully dispersed nanomaterials exhibit the intrinsic electronic characteristics of the polymers and concurrently respond to external magnetic fields. Electrospinning was utilized to fabricate polyacrylonitrile nanofibers blended with Fe₂O₃ and MnZn ferrite nanoparticles, which were thermomechanically, morphologically, and spectroscopically characterized in detail. With the application of an external magnetic field in the course of dynamic mechanical measurements under tension, the storage modulus of the glass transition T_g of PAN/Fe₂O₃ rises at the expense of the loss modulus, and a new peak emerges at ∼350 K. For the PAN/MnZn ferrite nanofibers a relatively larger shift in T_g (from ∼367 K to ∼377 K) is observed, emphasizing that in comparison to Fe₂O₃, Mn²⁺ ions in particular enhance the material's magnetic response in MnZn Ferrite. The magnetic oxide particles are homogenously dispersed in polyacrylonitrile, corroborated by high-resolution scanning electron microscopy. Both nanopowder additions lead to a slight shift of the peak towards larger angles, related to the shrinkage of the polymer. Produced nanofibers with high mechanical and heating efficiency can optimize the influence of the intracellular environment, magnetic refrigeration systems and sensors/actuators by their magnetic behavior and heat generation.