We prepared polyacrylonitrile (PAN) and cellulose acetate (CA) based nanofibres with high amount of carbon nanotubes (CNTs) by core-shell electrospinning. Atomic force microscopy (AFM) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM) were used to evaluate the morphology and structure of the electrospun nanofibres. Raman spectroscopy (Raman) and TEM indicate alignment of CNTs in the polymer fibres. Core-shell electrospinning improved the distribution and uniformity of the fibres. The loading of carbon nanotubes showed better thermal stability. (C) 2010 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.