English Abstract

Preparation of Soluble Carbon Nanotubes and their Applications to the Construction of Nano-Composite Materials Naotoshi NAKASHIMA Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, Graduate School of Engineering, Kyushu University,Fukuoka Nippon Gomu Kyokaishi,(2004),77(12),414-419 General Review in Japanese Abstract Carbon nanotubes (CNTs) have been in the forefront of nanoscience and nanotechnology because of their remarkable electronic, mechanical and thermal properties and specific functions. CNTs have high potentials for possible applications in the fields of energy, electronics, IT and novel nano-materials. However, because of the insolubility of the nanotubes in solvents, chemical, biochemical and biological (medical) approaches using these materials have been rather limited. Soluble carbon nanotubes in aqueous and organic systems are of interests since they may open the door in such fields. In this review article, we describe: i) introduction, ii) structure of CNTs, iii) synthesis and purification of CNTS, iv) dissolution of CNTs by physical adsorption of surfactants, polymer and polycyclic aromatic compounds and DNA, v) separation of semiconducting CNTs and metallic CNTs, and vi) nanocomposites with polymers including the preparation of nanotube films and fibers. Keywords: Soluble carbon nanotube; chemical modification; physical adsorption; nanotube functionalization

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