Coaxial wet-spun PEDOT:PSS fibers for high-performance electromagnetic shielding

With the widespread use of electronic devices and the development of emerging technologies such as 5   G, the issue of electromagnetic radiation is becoming increasingly severe, posing a threat to human health. In response to the increasingly severe problem of electromagnetic radiation pollution, high-performance electromagnetic shielding fabrics were prepared successfully by optimizing the synthesis process of PEDOT:PSS and combining it with coaxial wet spinning technology. During the synthesis phase, the synthesis conditions of the PEDOT:PSS aqueous dispersion were optimized by adjusting the ratio of 3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene (EDOT), sodium polystyrene sulfonate (PSS-Na), and deionized water, resulting in a reduction of its resistance to 381.7 Ω and a significant enhancement in conductivity. Based on the optimized PEDOT:PSS aqueous dispersion, carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs) and sodium alginate (SA) were further introduced to prepare four different kinds of coaxial structure fibers: SA-CNT@SA, P-SA-CNT@SA, SA-CNT@P-SA, and P-SA-CNT@P-SA. After weaving these fibers into fabrics, their electromagnetic shielding performance was systematically evaluated. The results showed that the P-SA-CNT@P-SA fiber fabric achieved the highest shielding effectiveness of 28.6   dB in the warp direction and 10   dB in the weft direction; its absorption effectiveness (SE A ) was significantly higher than its reflection effectiveness (SE R ), indicating that the fabric primarily employs an absorption-dominated shielding mechanism, effectively reducing secondary electromagnetic pollution. This study not only improves the conductivity and electromagnetic shielding performance of the fibers but also considers environmental friendliness, providing new technical pathways and theoretical references for the development of efficient, flexible, and low secondary pollution electromagnetic shielding materials.