Reduction and Separation of Carbon Nanotube Bundles Using the P(VDF-TrFE) Copolymer: Nanobundles

Abstract

A method offering the opportunity to synthesize shortened, spaced and reduced single-walled carbon nanotube (SWCNT) bundles is presented as the effect of the polyvinylidene fluoride and trifluoroethylene P(VDF-TrFE) copolymer on carbon nanotubes. Firstly, the TXRF tool was used to study the purity of the SWCNTs prepared by arc-discharge. The results showed that SWCNTs method contains the catalytic particles such as Fe, Co and Ni used for synthesizing SWCNTs. Secondly, a conventional transmission electron microscopy (TEM) was used in imaging and showing the topography changes between (SWCNT) and (SWCNT)-P(VDF-TrFE) nanocomposite. In our previous paper (El-Hami, K. and Matsushige, K. (2003). Chem. Phys. Lett., 368: 168), we demonstrated that the surface of carbon nanotubes was uniformly coated with P(VDF-TrFE). This paper showed that the P(VDF-TrFE) copolymer tended to intercalate the SWCNT bundles in order to reduce the size of SWCNT bundles and separate them, thus the nanobundles appellation.

Keywords

carbon nanotubes P(VDF-TrFE) copolymer matrix nanobundles nanocomposite

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