Understanding the behaviors of ZIF-67 reinforced electrospun carbon nanofibers in the preparation and stabilization

MOFs-reinforced electrospun carbon nanofibers offer a wide range of applications in the field of energy storage. In this study, ZIF-67 nanoparticles were produced and combined with polyacrylonitrile for electrospinning before being stabilized and carbonized to form a carbon nanofiber. BET, FT-IR, EA, DSC, and other techniques were used to investigate the stabilizing behaviors of PAN electrospun fiber with varying ZIF-67 concentrations at different temperatures. Under the same stabilizing settings, it was discovered that PAN electrospun fiber containing ZIF-67 nanoparticles could absorb more oxygen, promoting a higher degree of cyclization and crosslinking. Therefore, it was preferred to prepare carbon nanofibers at a lower stabilization temperature. Importantly, the degree of stability and disorder of the PAN/ZIF-67 stabilized fiber has been described by the FT-IR and the Raman spectra. This research deepens understanding about the formation of MOF-reinforced carbon nanofibers and expands our knowledge of the stability of PAN/MOF hybrid fibers.