Assembly of carbon nanotubes (CNTs) in effective and productive ways is of vital importance to their application. Recent progress in synthesis of CNTs has inspired new strategies for utilizing the unique physiochemical properties of CNTs in macroscale materials and devices. Assembling CNTs by dry processes (e.g., directly collecting CNTs in the form of freestanding films followed by pressing, stretching, and multilayer stacking instead of dispersing them in solution) not only considerably simplifies the processes but also avoids structural damage to the CNTs. Various dry-processable CNTs are reviewed, focusing on their synthesis, properties, and applications. The synthesis techniques are organized in terms of aggregative morphologies and microstructure control of CNTs. Important applications such as functional thin-film devices, strong CNT films, and composites are included. The opportunities and challenges in the synthesis techniques and fabrication of advanced composites and devices are discussed.
Carbon nanotube (CNT) arrays show great promise in developing anisotropic thermal conductive composites for efficiently dissipating heat from high-power devices along thickness direction. However, CNT arrays are always grown on some substrates and liable to be deformed and broken into pieces during transfer and solution treatment. In the present study, we intentionally synthesized well-crystallized and large-diameter (~80 nm) multiwalled CNT (MWCNT) arrays by floating catalyst chemical vapor deposition (FCCVD) method. Such arrays provided high packing density and robust structure from collapse and crack formation during post solution treatment and therefore favored to maintain original thermal and electrical conductive paths. Under optimized condition, the CNT arrays can be transferred into flexible composite films. Furthermore, the composite film also exhibited excellent thermal conductivity at 8.2 W/(m·K) along thickness direction. Such robust, flexible, and highly thermal conductive composite film may enable some prospective applications in advanced thermal management.
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