Electrospray Deposition, Model, and Experiment: Toward General Control of Film Morphology

Poly(vinylidene fluoride) film formation with electrospray deposition has been studied with support of a
droplet evaporation model. The input parameters of the model consist basically of the solvent, the solute
concentration, the flow rate, and the solution conductivity. The model provides the droplet size, the solute
concentration, the droplet velocity, and the shear stress of the droplet at impact as a function of the distance
between the nozzle and the substrate. With some additional experimental information such as the size change
of the film with spray distance and the viscosity of the solution, the growth rate of the film and the shear rate
of the droplet at impact can be determined. Growth rate is shown to define distinct regimes of film formation.
In those regimes, only a single factor or a limited number of factors controls the film morphology. The most
important factors include the shear rate and the surface energy. It is found that at a specific range of growth
rates only the shear rate determines the morphology of the polymer film. Growth rate, as the defining quantity
of film morphology, is not limited to polymer solutions. Therefore, the growth rate, in combination with the
control factors mentioned above, functions as a general framework through which understanding and control
of film formation with electrospray deposition can be improved.