Carbon nanotube

1. Introduction

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Carbon nanotubes (CNTs) are allotropes of carbon with a cylindrical nanostructure. Nanotubes have been constructed with length-to-diameter ratio of up to 132,000,000:1. These cylindrical carbon molecules have unusual properties, which are valuable for

nanotechnology, electronics, optics and other fields of materials science and technology. In particular, owing to their extraordinary thermal conductivity and mechanical and electrical properties, carbon nanotubes find applications as additives to various structural materials. Carbon nanotubes were 'discovered' in 1991 by Sumio Iijima and are effectively long, thin cylinders of graphite, which you will be familiar with as the material in a pencil or as the basis of some lubricants. Graphite is made up of layers of carbon atoms arranged in a hexagonal lattice (figure 1). The layers themselves are not chemically bonded to each other but held together by weak forces called Van der Waals. It is the sliding across each other of these layers that gives graphite its lubricating qualities and makes the mark on a piece of paper as you draw your pencil over it.

(Figure 1)

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2. Types of Carbon nanotubes

2.1 Single-Walled Carbon Nanotubes (SWNTs) These are the stars of the nanotube world, and somewhat reclusive ones at that, being much harder to make than the multi-walled variety. The oft-quoted amazing properties generally refer to SWNTs. As previously described, they are basically tubes of graphite and are normally capped at the ends, although the caps can be removed. The theoretical minimum diameter of a carbon nanotube is around 0.4 nanometers, which is about as long as two silicon atoms side by side, and nanotubes this size have been made. Average diameters tend to be around the 1.2 nanometer mark, depending on the process used to create them. SWNTs are more pliable than their multi-walled counterparts and can be twisted, flattened and bent into small circles or around sharp bends without breaking.

(Figure 2) Single-Walled Carbon Nanotubes

2.2 Chirality Imagine again the chicken wire that we roll up to make the nanotube. You could cut the rectangle with the sides vertical or at various angles. Additionally, when joining the sides together, you can raise or lower one side. In some cases it will not be possible to make a tube such that the loose ends match and hexagons are formed, but in other cases it will, and these
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represent the possible permutations of SWNTs. The possibilities are two forms in which a pattern circles around the diameter of the tube, often called zigzag and armchair (not the most intuitive of names, unfortunately but they are now widely used), and a variety of forms in which the hexagons spiral up or down the tube with varying steepness, these being the chiral forms. There is theoretically an infinite variety of the latter, if you allow for infinite diameters of nanotubes.

(Figure 3) Chiral Carbon nanotube

2.3 Multi-Walled Carbon Nanotubes (MWNTs)

Multi-walled carbon nanotubes are basically made out of SWNTsconcentric cylindrical graphitic tubes. In these more complex structures, the different SWNTs that form the MWNT may have quite different structures (length and chirality). MWNTs are typically 100 times longer than they are wide and have outer diameters mostly in the tens of nanometres. Although it is easier to produce significant quantities of MWNTs than SWNTs, their structures are less well understood than single-wall nanotubes because of their greater complexity and variety. Multitudes of exotic shapes and arrangements, often with imaginative names such as bamboo-trunks, sea urchins, necklaces or coils, have also been observed under different processing conditions. The variety of forms may be interesting but also has a negative sideMWNTs always have more defects than SWNTs and these diminish their desirable properties. Many of the nanotube applications now being considered or put into practice involve multi-walled nanotubes, because they are easier to produce in large quantities at a reasonable
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price and have been available in decent amounts for much longer than SWNTs. In fact one of the major manufacturers of MWNTs at the moment, Hyperion Catalysis, does not even sell the nanotubes directly but only pre-mixed with polymers for composites applications. The tubes
involved typically have 8 to 15 walls and are around 10 nanometres wide and 10 micrometers long. Other companies are moving into this space, notably formidable players like Mitsui, with plans to produce similar types of MWNT in hundreds of tons a year, a quantity that is greater, but not hugely so, than the current production of Hyperion Catalysis. This is an indication that even these less impressive and exotic nanotubes hold promise of representing a sizable market in the near future.

Figure 4) Multi-Walled Carbon nanotubes

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2.4 Nanohorns

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These are single-walled carbon cones with structures similar to those of nanotube caps that have been produced by high temperature treatment of fullerene soot. Sumio Iijima's group at NEC has demonstrated that nanohorns have good adsorptive and catalytic properties (i.e. desired substances stick to them and they enhance chemical reactions), and the company is working on using them in a new generation of fuel cells for personal electronics. 2.5 Nanofibers We use this term to refer to hollow and solid carbon fibers with lengths on the order of a few microns and widths varying from some tens of nanometers to around 200 nanometers. These materials have occasionally been referred to as nanotubes. However, they do not have the cylindrical chicken wire structure of SWNTs and MWNTs but instead consist of a mixture of forms of carbon, from layers of graphite stacked at various angles to amorphous carbon (lacking any large-scale regular structure). Because of this variable structure they do not exhibit the strength of pure nanotubes but can still be quite strong and possess other useful properties. The US company Applied Sciences Inc. is already producing tons of such material a year and there are several major producers in the Far East.

3. Carbon nanotube Production Processes

Techniques have been developed to produce nanotubes in sizeable quantities, including arc discharge, laser ablation, high-pressure carbon monoxide, and chemical vapor deposition (CVD). Most of these processes take place in vacuum or with process gases. CVD growth of CNTs can occur in vacuum or at atmospheric pressure. Large quantities of nanotubes can be synthesized by these methods; advances in catalysis and continuous growth processes are making CNTs more commercially viable. 3.1 Laser Ablation In the laser ablation process, a pulsed laser vaporizes a graphite target in a hightemperature reactor while an inert gas is bled into the chamber. Nanotubes develop on the cooler surfaces of the reactor as the vaporized carbon condenses. A water-cooled surface may be included in the system to collect the nanotubes.

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This process was developed by Dr. Richard Smalley and co-workers. Who at the time of the discovery of carbon nanotubes, were blasting metals with a laser to produce various metal molecules. When they heard of the existence of nanotubes they replaced the metals with graphite to create multi-walled carbon nanotubes. Later that year the team used a composite of graphite and metal catalyst particles (the best yield was from a cobalt and nickel mixture) to synthesize single-walled carbon nanotubes. The laser ablation method yields around 70% and produces primarily single-walled carbon nanotubes with a controllable diameter determined by the reaction temperature. However, it is more expensive than either arc discharge or chemical vapor deposition.

4. Properties
4.1 Strength Carbon nanotubes are the strongest and stiffest materials yet discovered in terms of tensile strength and elastic modulus respectively. This strength results from the covalent sp2 bonds formed between the individual carbon atoms. In 2000, a multi-walled carbon nanotube was tested to have a tensile strength of 63 gigapascals (GPa). Further studies, revealed that individual CNT shells have strengths of up to ~100 GPa, which is in good agreement with quantum/atomistic models. Since carbon nanotubes have a low density for a solid of 1.3 to 1.4 g/cm3 its specific strength of up to 48,000 KNmkg1 is the best of known materials, compared to high-carbon steel's 154 KNmkg1. Further studies, revealed that individual CNT shells have strengths of up to ~100 GPa, which is in good agreement with quantum/atomistic models. Since carbon nanotubes have a low density for a solid of 1.3 to 1.4 g/cm3 its specific strength of up to 48,000 KNmkg1 is the best of known materials, compared to high-carbon steel's 154 KNmkg1. CNTs are not nearly as strong under compression. Because of their hollow structure and high aspect ratio, they tend to undergo buckling when placed under compressive, torsional, or bending stress.

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Material SWNT Armchair SWNT Zigzag SWNT Chiral SWNT MWNT Stainless steel Kevlar29&149 Young's modulus (TPa) ~1 (from 1 to 5) 0.94 .94 0.92 0.2-0.8-0.95 0.186-0.214 0.06-0.18 Tensile strength (GPa) 1353 126.2 94.5 11-63-150 0.38-1.55 3.6-3.8 Elongation at break (%) 1353 23.1 15.6-17.5

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Density (g/cm3)

15-50 2

2.600 7.800 1.250

4.2 Hardness Standard single-walled carbon nanotubes can withstand a pressure up to 24GPa without deformation. They then undergo a transformation to super hard phase nanotubes. Maximum pressures measured using current experimental techniques are around 55GPa. However, these new super hard phase nanotubes collapse at an even higher, albeit unknown, pressure. The bulk modulus of super hard phase nanotubes is 462 to 546 GPa, even higher than that of diamond (420 GPa for single diamond crystal). 4.3 Electrical properties Because of the symmetry and unique electronic structure of graphene, the structure of a nanotube strongly affects its electrical properties. For a given (n,m) nanotube, if n = m, the nanotube is metallic; if n m is a multiple of 3, then the nanotube is semiconducting with a very small band gap, otherwise the nanotube is a moderate semiconductor. Thus all armchair (n = m) nanotubes are metallic, and nanotubes (6, 4), (9, 1), etc. are semiconducting. 4.4 Thermal properties All nanotubes are expected to be very good thermal conductors along the tube, exhibiting a property known as "ballistic conduction", but good insulators laterally to the tube axis. Measurements show that a SWNT has a room-temperature thermal conductivity along its axis of about 3500 Wm1K1 compare this to copper, a metal well known for its good thermal conductivity, which transmits 385 Wm1K1. A SWNT has a room-temperature thermal conductivity across its axis (in the radial direction) of about 1.52 Wm1K1, which

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estimated to be up to 2800 C in vacuum and about 750 C in air.

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is about as thermally conductive as soil. The temperature stability of carbon nanotubes is

5. Advantages
a) Extremely small and lightweight, making them excellent replacements for metallic wires. b) Resources required to produce them are plentiful, and many can be made with only a small amount of material. c) Are resistant to temperature changes, meaning they function almost just as well in extreme cold as they do in extreme heat. d) Nanotechnology can actually revolutionize a lot of electronic products, procedures, and applications. The areas that benefit from the continued development of nanotechnology when it comes to electronic products include nano transistors, nano diodes, OLED, plasma displays, quantum computers, and many more. e) Nanotechnology can also benefit the energy sector. The development of more effective energy-producing, energy-absorbing, and energy storage products in smaller and more efficient devices is possible with this technology. Such items like batteries, fuel cells, and solar cells can be built smaller but can be made to be more effective with this technology. f) Another industry that can benefit from nanotechnology is the manufacturing sector that will need materials like nanotubes, aerogels, nano particles, and other similar items to produce their products with. These materials are often stronger, more durable, and lighter than those that are not produced with the help of nanotechnology.
g) In the medical world, nanotechnology is also seen as a boon since these can help with

creating what is called smart drugs. These help cure people faster and without the side effects that other traditional drugs have. You will also find that the research of nanotechnology in medicine is now focusing on areas like tissue regeneration, bone repair, immunity and even cures for such ailments like cancer, diabetes, and other diseases.

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6. Disadvantages

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a) Despite all the research, scientists still don't understand exactly how they work. b) Extremely small, so are difficult to work with. c) Currently, the process is relatively expensive to produce the nanotubes. d) Would be expensive to implement this new technology in and replace the older technology. e) Included in the list of disadvantages of this science and its development is the possible loss of jobs in the traditional farming and manufacturing industry. f) You will also find that the development of nanotechnology can also bring about the crash of certain markets due to the lowering of the value of oil and diamonds due to the possibility of developing alternative sources of energy that are more efficient and wont require the use of fossil fuels. This can also mean that since people can now develop products at the molecular level, diamonds will also lose its value since it can now be mass produced. g) Atomic weapons can now be more accessible and made to be more powerful and more destructive. These can also become more accessible with nanotechnology. h) Since these particles are very small, problems can actually arise from the inhalation of these minute particles, much like the problems a person gets from inhaling minute asbestos particles.

7. Physical and Chemical Properties Property Molecular Weight Melting Point Specific Gravity Solubility in Water Odour Thermal conductivity values Clumpy, black powder 3500 Greater than 1 Insoluble Odourless 2000 w/mk

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8. Applications
a) Waterproof and/or tear-resistant fabrics.

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b) Adding CNT to polyethylene can increase the polymer's elastic modulus by 30%. c) Bridges-CNT may be able to replace steel in suspension and other bridges. d) Light bulb filament: alternative to tungsten filaments in incandescent lamps. e) Artificial muscles-CNT's have sufficient contractility to make them candidates to replace muscle tissue. f) Magnets-Multi-walled nanotubes (MWNT coated with magnetite can generate strong magnetic fields). g) Air pollution filter-CNT membranes can filter carbon dioxide from power plant emissions. h) Conductive films-LCDs touch screens, and photovoltaic devices. i) Superconductor-Nanotubes have been shown to be superconducting at low temperatures. j) Stealth-Absorbance is high in wide ranges from FUV to FIR.

9. conclusion
a) Their phenomenal mechanical properties, and unique electronic properties make them both interesting as well as potentially useful in future technologies. b) Significant improvement over current state of electronics can be achieved if controllable growth is achieved. c) Growth conditions play a significant role in deciding the electronic and mechanical properties of CNTs. d) Growth Mechanisms yet to be fully established.

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10. Reference
a) Topics in Applied Physics Carbon Nanotubes: Synthesis, Structure, Properties and Applications. b) Carbon Nanotube Electronics

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PHAEDON AVOURIS, MEMBER, IEEE, JOERG APPENZELLER, RICHARD MARTEL, AND SHALOM J. WIND, SENIOR MEMBER, IEEE PROCEEDINGS OF THE IEEE, VOL. 91, NO. 11, NOVEMBER 2003 c) Carbon Nanotubes: Single molecule wires Sarah Burke, Sean Collins, David Montiel, Mikhail Sergeev d) http://www.ipt.arc.nasa.gov. e) Carbon Nanotubes: Introduction to Nanotechnology 2003 Mads Brandbyge.

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