title: Fabrication and characterization of ultrahigh-volume- fraction aligned carbon nanotube-polymer composites.
abstract: Aligned CNT nanocomposites with variable volume fraction, up to 20%, are demonstrated. Biaxial mechanical densification of aligned CNT forests, followed by capillarity-driven wetting using unmodified aerospace-grade polymers, creates centimeter-scale specimens. Characterizations confirm CNT alignment and dispersion in the thermosets, providing a useful platform for controlled nanoscale interaction and nanocomposite property studies that emphasize anisotropy.
authors.affiliation: Departments of Aeronautics and Astronautics and Chemical Engineering Massachusetts Institute of Technology 77 Massachusetts Avenue, Cambridge, MA 02139 (USA). wardle@mit.edu.
authors.forename: Brian L
authors.initials: BL
authors.lastname: Wardle
authors.forename: Diego S
authors.initials: DS
authors.lastname: Saito
authors.forename: Enrique J
authors.initials: EJ
authors.lastname: García
authors.forename: A John
authors.initials: AJ
authors.lastname: Hart
authors.forename: Roberto Guzmán
authors.initials: RG
authors.lastname: de Villoria
authors.forename: Eric A
authors.initials: EA
authors.lastname: Verploegen
keywords: arrays; carbon nanotubes; composites; polymers; structure-property relationships