title: Determination of moisture content of single-wall carbon nanotubes.
abstract: Several techniques were evaluated for the establishment of reliable water/moisture content of single-wall carbon nanotubes. Karl Fischer titration (KF) provides a direct measure of the water content and was used for benchmarking against results obtained by conventional oven drying, desiccation over anhydrous magnesium perchlorate as well as by thermogravimetry and prompt gamma-ray activation analysis. Agreement amongst results was satisfactory with the exception of thermogravimetry, although care must be taken with oven drying as it is possible to register mass gain after an initial moisture loss if prolonged drying time or elevated temperatures (120 °C) are used. Thermogravimetric data were precise but a bias was evident that could be accounted for by considering the non-selective loss of mass as volatile carbonaceous components. Simple drying over anhydrous magnesium perchlorate for a minimum period of 8-10 days is recommended if KF is not available for this measurement.
authors: Institute for National Measurement Standards, National Research Council of Canada, Ottawa, ON, Canada. ralph.sturgeon@nrc.ca
authors: Ralph E
authors: RE
authors: Sturgeon
authors: Joseph W
authors: JW
authors: Lam
authors: Anthony
authors: A
authors: Windust
authors: Patricia
authors: P
authors: Grinberg
authors: Rolf
authors: R
authors: Zeisler
authors: Rabia
authors: R
authors: Oflaz
authors: Rick L
authors: RL
authors: Paul
authors: Brian E
authors: BE
authors: Lang
authors: Jeffrey A
authors: JA
authors: Fagan
authors: Benoit
authors: B
authors: Simard
authors: Christopher T
authors: CT
authors: Kingston
mesh_terms: D003890:Desiccation; D037742:Nanotubes, Carbon / Q000032:analysis*; D013818:Thermogravimetry; D014867:Water / Q000032:analysis*
chemical_list: D037742:Nanotubes, Carbon; D014867:Water