Does anyone have experience of a fault in an electrospinner which causes voltage to leak into the polymer solution/line?
Video attached to demonstrate electrical 'lightning' trying to ground itself from the syringe fittings. Burning appears within the polymer line.
Syringe is clean/there are no leaks. You receive a strong static electricity type shock if you touch any tubing/syringe/pump/anything conductive near the electrospinner while it is switched on.
I've tested multiple solutions - no pattern HOWEVER low conductivity solutions (with water for example) appear to need much higher voltage than usual to allow electrospinning - can't even get a fibre from PVA:H20 until up near 23kV (and it's still not really a stable fibre) when I should be able to spin PVA:H20 at much lower (9-13kV).
Any help greatly appreciated, even technical staff at the supplier seem stumped.
Thank you!
Morning Andrei Stanishevsky - thank you for your detailed answer!
The video does indeed show syringe pump, syringe and fittings connecting the syringe to the tubing.
The spinner should be fully grounded, however I suspect it is not as it is giving me electric shocks. Also, the leaking is caused by the arcing burning the fittings, it's not present before the arcing.
Good suggestion with the teflon, I'll also add some under the syringe pump. I will drop you an email if it continues - thank you!
Dear Rhiannon,
In the video it seems there is an "electric arc" flowing from the metal (ground) and syringe or the opposite matter of polarity. I guess the problem is that the syringe is electrically connected to the counter electrode, maybe your polymer is conductor and works like a wire so the current "goes up" trough the solution and jumps to the grounded metal clamp. Indeed enhance the isolation could work because you will increase the gap trough the syringe and the metal (ground). I think a fully covered clamp would work better, you could try to put it inside a rubber glove for example because I guess if you doesn't isolate the metal clamp the arc will "jump" just in another region. You could consider increase the gap between the tube and counter electrode, decrease concentration in a way there would be no electrical connection between counter electrode and the extremity of the "delivering tube". You should have coulombic attraction of charged particles in direction of counter electrode and not a electrical connection it means the current should be Zero. But it is just a guess !
Additionaly, take care about this part "Syringe is clean/there are no leaks. You receive a strong static electricity type shock if you touch any tubing/syringe/pump/anything conductive near the electrospinner while it is switched on." Means your syringe is probably charging (like a capacitor) it could be dangerous because it could result in serious electric shock for the user and also a risk of spark fire initiator depending on the solvent your are working with.
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