Production of Elastomeric Fibers from Natural Rubber Latex by Electrospinning

Elastomeric fibers can be utilized in various applications. This work aims to prepare elastomeric fibers from natural rubber latex by electrospinning. Three types of rubber latexes (concentrated latex with high ammonia, compounded latex, and pre-vulcanized latex) were used and compared. The viscosity of the latexes, the electrical conductivity of the latexes, and electrospinning conditions (e.g., applied potential and feed rate) were studied and optimized. Morphological appearances of the obtained fiber were investigated by scanning electron microscopy (SEM). The result showed that fibers could not form by electrospinning from the concentrated latex with high ammonia, but many connected beads were found instead. For the pre-vulcanized latex, the number of beads was found to reduce, and the beaded fibers could be successfully produced.