The processing of nanoparticles based composition is significantly influenced by a myriad of processing parameters, including screw design, feed location, screw speed, temperature profile and head pressure for melt compounded applications and solution as well as template parameters in electrospinning. The influence of feeding configuration on dispersion, mechanical properties and air-borne particle concentration was examined. A 7 MFR PMMA was compounded with 2 and 5 wt% nanoaluminum oxide (Al2O3). A fast mobility particle analyzer was used to measure airborne particle levels at the hopper and the feed ports. These levels were correlated to the particle size and material loss.

In the electrospinning process, a novel approach to align nanofibers of medium molecular weight polyester-based thermoplastic polyurethane (TPU) involved studying various processing and template parameters as a function of percent aligned fibers. Optical microscopy was used to characterize fiber orientation.