Continuous Direct Spinning of Fibers of Single‐Walled Carbon Nanotubes with Metallic Chirality

Abstract

The electrical properties of single‐walled carbon nanotubes depend critically on their structure. Using a method for spinning of nanotube based fibers directly from the synthesis reaction zone, the critical control of sulfur precursors in the reaction allows the production of a fiber consisting of single‐walled carbon nanotubes with the same, sought after metallic properties, and chiral angle.

Probing the role of carbon solubility in transition metal catalyzing single-walled carbon nanotubes growth

“…In real experiments, carbon solubility could be tuned using bimetallic alloys, forming a real nanoalloy, as opposed to phase separated NPs, such as Ni x Fe (1−x) 48 . Another way to act on it might be the use of a surfactant, such as sulfur, that can be introduced in the system with the gaseous phase, via thiophene molecules, as done by Sundaram et al 49 . For low carbon fractions, while carbon wall dewetting is a necessary step for SWNT nucleation and prolongation, the strong adhesion energy favors the adhesion and wetting of the carbon sp 2 wall on the surface of the nanoparticle, thus causing the catalyst particle deactivation.…”

Does water dope carbon nanotubes?

“…We consider supercells containing a single water molecule adsorbed on one of two CNT structures: 16 unitcells of a semiconducting (10, 0) CNT; and 28 unit-cells of a metallic (5,5) CNT. The overall length of each supercell is 68.5 Å and 69.1 Å, respectively.…”

“…The unique electronic properties of carbon nanotubes (CNTs) make them a promising material for novel applications 1 including highly sensitive chemical sensors, 2,3 light-weight electrical wires, [4][5][6] and nanoscale electronic devices. 1,7,8 Optimal performance of these devices often requires the CNTs to have a particular electronic character, whether semiconducting or metallic, which is determined by the CNT chirality.…”

High-strength carbon nanotube fibre-like ribbon with high ductility and high electrical conductivity

“…For strength improvement, the intertube load transfer may be manipulated by already reported methods such as electron irradiation 31,32 , chemical treatment 33 and polymer impregnation [34][35][36] , forming primary bonds between CNTs, which are much stronger than Van der Waals interactions. For conductivity improvement, tube chirality should be particularly tailored 37 , and iodine doping 13,38 and metal coating 39,40 may be imposed. However, it should be noted that all these modifications may result in gain of one property but loss of another, and the theoretical properties may not be reachable because of the inevitable presence of defects within CNTs and between their surfaces.…”