Preparation of Nano-PbWO4 Particles by Polymaleic Acid Modification: A Highly Filled Nonwoven Membrane Used To Improve the Wearing Comfort and Radiation Safety of γ-ray Protection Products

Personal protective equipment (PPE) is an important wearable device for people exposed to radiation because of its comfort and safety. Unfortunately, ordinary PbWO4 (PWO) particles cannot uniformly prepare highly filled composites; therefore, we prepared PWO@PMA nanoparticles by a simple precipitation method using polymaleic acid (PMA). Then, a highly filled PWO@PMA/PVA nonwoven membrane is obtained by solution mixing and electrospinning. In the PWO@PMA/PVA nonwoven membrane, PWO@PMA is evenly dispersed and has good compatibility with the PVA interface. All nonwoven membranes prepared by the stable electrospinning method have ideal mechanical properties. Importantly, the prepared PWO@PMA/PVA nonwoven membrane can not only shield γ-rays but also has good air permeability. The 70 wt % PWO@PMA/PVA nonwoven membrane has a γ-ray shielding rate of 42.16% (105 keV) and an air permeability of 17.1 mm/s. This study provides a practical and effective method for the production of nonwoven membranes with high polymer content and provides a promising opportunity to enhance the wearing comfort of PPE.