Morphological Sensitivity of Electrospun PVP Scaffolds to Processing Parameters: Implications for Skin Tissue Engineering

Electrospinning is a versatile technique for fabricating nanofibrous scaffolds that mimic the extracellular matrix (ECM), offering a biomimetic environment for tissue engineering applications. This study investigates the influence of key processing parameters, polyvinylpyrrolidone (PVP) concentration, flow rate, applied voltage, and needle diameter, on fiber formation and morphology. Electrospinning using ethanol as solvent was unsuccessful at lower PVP concentrations (40–50% w/v) due to inadequate viscosity and chain entanglement. Increasing the concentration to 60% (w/v), with a flow rate of 1 mL/h and voltage of 26 kV, enabled stable fiber formation using 15G and 18G needles. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and ImageJ analysis revealed significant differences in fiber diameter: 1853.90 ± 229 nm for 15G and 647.52 ± 638 nm for 18G, demonstrating the sensitivity of electrospinning to minor parameter variations. These findings underscore the importance of systematic optimization to achieve scaffolds with uniform morphology, high porosity, and interconnected architecture, which are essential for cell attachment, nutrient diffusion, and tissue integration in regenerative medicine.