2011 Annual Meeting
(693c) Spontaneous Dissolution of Ultralong Carbon Nanotubes for Production of Neat CNT Fibers
Authors
A. Nicholas G. Parra-Vasquez - Presenter, Université de Bordeaux, Institut d'Optique Graduate School & CNRS
Natnael Behabtu - Presenter, Rice University
Micah J. Green - Presenter, Rice University
Cary L. Pint - Presenter, Rice University
Colin C. Young - Presenter, Rice University
Judith Schmidt - Presenter, Technion-Israel Institute of Technology
Ellina Kesselman - Presenter, Technion-Israel Institute of Technology
Anubha Goyal - Presenter, Rice University
Yachin Cohen - Presenter, Technion-Israel Institute of Technology
Yeshayahu Talmon - Presenter, Technion-Israel Institute of Technology
Robert H. Hauge - Presenter, Rice University
Matteo Pasquali - Presenter, Rice University
We report that chlorosulfonic acid is a true solvent for a wide range of carbon nanotubes (CNTs), including single-walled (SWNTs), double-walled (DWNTs), multiwalled carbon nanotubes (MWNTs), and CNTs hundreds of micrometers long. The CNTs dissolve as individuals at low concentrations, as determined by cryo-TEM (cryogenic transmission electron microscopy), and form liquid-crystalline phases at high concentrations. The mechanism of dissolution is electrostatic stabilization through reversible protonation of the CNT side walls, as previously established for SWNTs. CNTs with highly defective side walls do not protonate sufficiently and, hence, do not dissolve. The dissolution and liquid-crystallinity of ultralong CNTs are critical advances in the liquid-phase processing of macroscopic CNT-based materials, such as fibers and films.