Abstract
The polyimide nanofiber superior in heat resistance was made by the electrospinning process. We tried this nanofiber as reinforced material of the thermoplastic polyurethane elastomer (TPU elastomer). For comparison, commercial polyimide microfibers were examined by using them as reinforced material. We evaluated test materials composed of nanofibers of 450nm mean diameter made from 13wt% polyimide solution and those composed of nanofibers of 300nm mean diameter made from 10wt% polyimide solution. The improvement in both elastic modulus and breaking strength was confirmed for TPU elastomer composites reinforced by 1wt% polyimide nanofibers using a kneading method.
