True solutions of single-walled carbon nanotubes for assembly into macroscopic materials.
Translating the unique characteristics of individual single-walled carbon nanotubes into macroscopic materials such as fibres and sheets has been hindered by ineffective assembly. Fluid-phase assembly is particularly attractive, but the ability to dissolve nanotubes in solvents has eluded researchers for over a decade. Here, we show that single-walled nanotubes form true thermodynamic solutions in superacids, and report the full phase diagram, allowing the rational design of fluid-phase assembly processes. Single-walled nanotubes dissolve spontaneously in chlorosulphonic acid at weight concentrations of up to 0.5 wt%, 1,000 times higher than previously reported in other acids. At higher concentrations, they form liquid-crystal phases that can be readily processed into fibres and sheets of controlled morphology. These results lay the foundation for bottom-up assembly of nanotubes and nanorods into functional materials.
Davis
Virginia A
VA
Richard E Smalley Institute for Nanoscale Science and Technology, Rice University, Houston, TX 77005, USA.
Parra-Vasquez
A Nicholas G
AN
Green
Micah J
MJ
Rai
Pradeep K
PK
Behabtu
Natnael
N
Prieto
Valentin
V
Booker
Richard D
RD
Schmidt
Judith
J
Kesselman
Ellina
E
Zhou
Wei
W
Fan
Hua
H
Adams
W Wade
WW
Hauge
Robert H
RH
Fischer
John E
JE
Cohen
Yachin
Y
Talmon
Yeshayahu
Y
Smalley
Richard E
RE
Pasquali
Matteo
M