Comparison of Different Methods of Stabilization of Polyvinyl Alcohol Nanotextiles

Nanotextile is a promising type of material for applications in civil engineering. Nanotextiles made of polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) can be easily produced in large scale by so-called Nanospider technology. However, the applicability of such textiles is limited by the fact that untreated PVA is water-soluble. There exist well-known methods of stabilization of PVA, making this material insoluble in water. The requirement that the stabilization method must preserve the structure of the nanotextile imposes restrictions upon the choice of possible methods. In the present paper we compare one physical and two chemical methods of stabilization of PVA nanotextile: the exposure to high temperature, and the immersion into solutions of methanol and glutaraldehyde. The influence of these methods on the structure of the nanotextile is controlled by a scanning electron microscope. It is shown that immersion in methanol solution eradicates the microscopic structure of the material and, thus, is not suitable for civil engineering applications. The heat treatment and glutaraldehyde stabilization preserve the porous structure of the nanotextile. However, stabilization with glutaraldehyde leads to swelling and cross-linking of fibers due to chemical reaction between PVA and GA.