  We study the effects of a controlled gas flow on the dynamics of electrified
jets in the electrospinning process. The main idea is to model the air drag
effects of the gas flow by using a non-linear Langevin-like approach. The model
is employed to investigate the dynamics of electrified polymer jets at
different conditions of air drag force, showing that a controlled gas
counterflow can lead to a decrease of the average diameter of electrospun
fibers, and potentially to an improvement of the quality of electrospun
products. We probe the influence of air drag effects on the bending
instabilities of the jet and on its angular fluctuations during the process.
The insights provided by this study might prove useful for the design of future
electrospinning experiments and polymer nanofiber materials.
