Polymeric nanostructured items electrospun on a cylindrical template: A simple procedure for their removal

Tubular structures, obtained by electrospinning on a rotating mandrel, are of interest for use as devices in medical and industrial applications. However, removal of electrospun tubes from the collecting mandrel has been a major problem and various techniques have been proposed, though having severe drawbacks. In our study, a method to safely remove electrospun tubes from a template mandrel (collector) is described. Before electrospinning, a copper wire is rolled up on the mandrel to form a helix, with the purpose of creating a gap between mandrel and electrospun tube once the wire is easily removed from the mandrel. Adopting the described methodology, uniform electrospun polymeric tubes can be easily removed from the mandrel. The procedure for fast rolling up of the wire on the rotating mandrel is also described.