Optimizing Electrospun PVA Fibers with MXene Integration for Biomedical Applications

Abstract

MXene-based materials have gained attention in the biomedical field due to their promising biocompatibility, improved mechanical strength, and conductivity. In this study, the focus is on optimizing MXene-incorporated electrospun fibers and subsequent characterizations to assess their potential for biomedical applications. Polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) is used as the appropriate matrix material and process parameters are finetuned to ensure effective incorporation of MXene. XRD and spectroscopic analysis confirm the successful synthesis and integration of MXenes into the nanofibers. Morphological analysis shows that MXene led to the formation of sub-micrometer fibers with smooth surfaces and reduced the fiber diameter (587 ± 191 nm) compared to pure PVA (696 ±160 nm). Investigations on the electrical characteristics demonstrate a fourfold increase in conductivity of nanofibers (σ = 1.90 ± 0.45 × 10⁻⁸ S cm⁻¹) after MXene addition (compared to σ = 0.46 ± 0.05 × 10⁻⁸ S cm⁻¹ of PVA-only fibers). Furthermore, the MXene-PVA system demonstrates a nearly twofold increase in mechanical stiffness, with E = 136.87 ± 19.63 MPa than 71.42 ± 16.56 MPa for PVA. Moreover, the initial in vitro experiments indicate improved L929 cell viability. These findings position MXene-PVA composites as a highly versatile platform for advanced biomedical devices, such as electroactive tissue scaffolds and wearable sensors.