Multiwall carbon nanotubes as MRI contrast agents for tracking stem cells

In this study we investigate the potential of multiwall carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs) with low metal impurities (2.57% iron) as magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) contrast agents. Taking into account probable aggregation at high MWCNTs concentration analysis shows that the r(2) relaxivity of MWCNTs in 1% agarose gels at 19?°C is 564 ± 41 s(-1) mM(-1); this is attributed to both the presence of iron oxide impurities and also to the carbon MWCNT structure itself. Stem cells were labelled with MWCNTs to demonstrate the effectiveness of MWCNTs as MRI contrast agents for cellular MRI. The MWCNTs did not impair cell viability or proliferation. These results suggest that the MRI contrast agent properties of the MWCNTs could be used in vivo for stem cell tracking/imaging and during MWCNT-mediated targeted electro-chemotherapy of tumours.     

Cationic polymerization of tetrahydrofuran from multiple-walled carbon nanotubes: Preparation and glass transition kinetics

Polytetramethylene ether (PTME) was chemically anchored to the surface of multi-walled carbon nanotubes (MWNTs) by cationic polymerization of tetrahydrofuran starting from the carbonyl chloride group-functionalized MWNT with silver perchlorate as a catalyst. The PTME-functionalized MWNT showed unusual glass transition kinetics determined by DSC, i.e. T_g occurred at lower temperatures at faster heating process.     

碳纳米管的催化裂解聚苯乙烯法的制备及其表征研究

利用流动催化裂解法以聚苯乙烯为碳源,二茂铁为催化剂前躯体制备出了碳纳米管.用扫描电子显微镜,透射电子显微镜,拉曼光谱和X射线衍射对碳纳米管的结构进行了表征.再者,通过导入噻吩,合成了一种有很多细碳纳米管分支的碳纳米管.该制备过程工艺简单,碳源价格低廉.利用这个方法,通过控制条件,可得到不同结构的碳纳米管.     

Preparation of carbon nanotubes by pyrolysis of dimethyl sulfide

Carbon nanotubes (CNTs) have been synthesized by cobalt-catalyzed pyrolysis of dimethyl sulfide (C₂H₆S). The influences of the experimental conditions on the morphology and microstructure of the product have been quantitatively analyzed. The synthesis temperature of 1000 °C is required for the decomposition of C₂H₆S. Both of the C₂H₆S vapor concentration and flow rate in the reaction chamber determine the quality of the product; the optimum C₂H₆S vapor concentration for CNT growth is around 3.36–5.48%. High flow rate of C₂H₆S vapor promote the formation of branched CNTs (BCNTs). The detailed growth mechanism of BCNTs has been proposed.     

用气相流动催化热解法合成单壁碳纳米管

以正硅酸乙酯(TEOS)为前驱体，二茂铁为催化剂前驱体，利用气相流动催化热解法在850～1160℃连续合成了单壁碳纳米管(SWNTs)．在此过程中，以由TEOS分解得到的二氧化硅颗粒和二茂铁分解得到的铁颗粒在气流中直接形成的复合粒于作为催化剂，二氧化硅作为铁颗粒的载体．电于显微镜和激光拉曼光谱的观测和分析表明，在所得到的产物中SWNTs的含量约为10％，其直径为1～2nm。     

流动催化热解法制备高质量多壁碳纳米管的研究

以甲烷为碳源,N2和H2作载气,二茂铁作催化剂前驱体,采用流动催化热解法制备出大量高质量取向性好的多壁碳纳米管(MWCNTs)。利用扫描电子显微镜(SEM),透射电子显微镜(TEM)和Raman光谱对碳纳米管的形貌和结构进行了表征。该制备过程工艺简单并且成本低廉,对实现碳纳米管的规模生产具有重要意义。     

Direct synthesis of Y-junction carbon nanotubes by microwave-assisted pyrolysis of methane

Both Y-junction carbon nanotubes and individual carbon nanotubes were synthesized without any additive catalyst by microwave decomposition of methane. Detailed microstructures of as-synthesized products have been characterized by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), and Raman spectroscopy. The results show that these Y-junction CNTs possess an internal bamboo-shaped structure, and some three dimensional multi-terminal junctions are also observed on CNTs. As gas flow rate decreased to 15 sccm, only individual nanotubes could be obtained. A possible mechanism is proposed for the synthesis of the Y-junction carbon nanotubes on these observations. This technique may also have great potential in making other nano-structured carbon materials on a large scale and at low cost.     

Carbon nanotubes from catalytic pyrolysis of deoiled asphalt

High purity and uniform carbon nanotubes with about 35 nm in diameter were produced by pyrolysis of deoiled asphalt in the presence of ferrocene in an atmosphere of hydrogen and argon at 1000 °C. Characterization of carbon nanotubes was carried out by field emission scanning electron microscopy (FESEM), high resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM), X-ray energy dispersive spectroscopy (EDS), Raman spectroscopy and X-ray diffraction (XRD). The carbon nanotubes were highly graphitized with amorphous carbons covering the outside wall. The influence of temperature on the preparation of carbon nanotubes was also discussed.     

Synthesis, characterization and properties of carbon nanotubes microspheres from pyrolysis of polypropylene and maleated polypropylene

Microspheres assembled from carbon nanotubes (MCNTs), with the diameters ranging from 5.5 to 7.5 μm, were synthesized by means of pyrolysis of polypropylene and maleated polypropylene in an autoclave. The characterization of structure and morphology was carried out by X-ray diffractometer (XRD), field-emission scanning electron microscopy (FESEM), (high resolution) transmission electron microscope [(HR)TEM)], selected-area electron diffraction (SAED) and Raman spectrum. As a typical morphology, the possible growth process of MCNTs was also investigated and discussed. The results of nitrogen adsorption-desorption indicate that the Brunauer-Emett-Teller (BET) surface area (140.6 m²/g) of the MCNTs obtained at 600 °C is about twice as that (74.5 m²/g) of carbon nanotubes obtained at 700 °C. The results of catalytic experiment show that MCNTs based catalyst has higher catalytic activity than the carbon nanotubes based catalyst for the preparation of methanol and dimethoxy-ethane by oxidation of dimethyl ether.     

Diffraction from carbon nanotubes

Full symmetry based analysis enables direct insight into various features of the diffraction patterns of carbon nanotubes. In particular, determination of the chiral indices of nanotubes may be performed.     

己烷低耗喷雾热解法大规模制备多壁碳纳米管

以己烷为碳源,二茂铁为催化剂前躯体,应用喷雾热解法,制备了多壁碳纳米管(MWCNTs).采用酸沥滤和空气氧化对MWCNTs进行纯化.利用SEM、TEM、XRD、EDS、TGA及Raman光谱分析等方法分别对原生和纯化MWCNTs进行表征.为制得优质、高产MWCNTs,对制备工艺参数作了优选,分别研讨了最佳制备参数,包括:二茂铁升华温度、己烷中二茂铁浓度、热解温度和时间,己烷与H2的流量比.MWCNTs具有典型的腊肠状(Sawsage-like)构型,长度大于数十微米,内、外管径分别为15nm～45nm及25nm～70nm,MWCNTs的纯度和产率的质量分数分别高于95%和70%.     

A facile method to fabricate silica-coated carbon nanotubes and silica nanotubes from carbon nanotubes templates

Silica-coated multiwalled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs) have been prepared by the sol–gel polymerization of tetraethoxysilane (TEOS) in the presence of the acid-oxidized MWCNTs at room temperature, followed by oxidizing the MWCNTs templates at high temperature in air to produce hollow silica nanotubes. The thickness and architectures of silica shell were well controlled by rationally adjusting the concentration of TEOS, and by adding cationic surfactant as a structure-directing agent. These results also give a clear answer to prove the fact that the structures of spherical silica particles can be fully “copied” to the coating shell and the wall of silica nanotubes when prepared by the same method as the synthesis of silica particles in the presence of templates.     

Synthesis and characterization of carbon nanotubes via ultrasonic spray pyrolysis method on zeolite

Ultrasonic spray pyrolysis method for the synthesis of carbon nanotubes (CNTs) has been investigated with zeolite supporting material. Single wall carbon nanotubes (SWCNTs) were obtained at 850 °C in nitrogen environment. Such deposition system makes it possible to grow CNTs without reducing agent at atmospheric pressure in a simple setup. Iron and cobalt acetate were used as catalyst and ethanol as carbon source for the synthesis of CNTs. Results show that nature of zeolite and cobalt concentration play important roles for SWCNTs production. Interestingly, we notice that in catalyst particles of sharp shape, nucleation of a nanotubes cap occurs dominantly in the forward direction.     

Growth morphology and spectroscopy of multiwall carbon nanotubes synthesized by pyrolysis of iron phthalocyanine

Carbon nanotubes (CNTs) were synthesized by Chemical Vapor Deposition (CVD) from the pyrolytic decomposition of Iron Phthalocyanine (FePc) molecules, on SiO2/Si(111) substrates in the presence of a hydrogen flow. FePc molecules contribute simultaneously both to the formation of the precursor Fe nanoparticles and also as a Carbon source. Different experimental conditions were examined. Samples were characterized by scanning electron microscopy, transmission electron microscopy, Raman spectroscopy, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, and inverse photoemission. The resulting samples are highly oriented multiwall carbon nanotubes films, with heights in the range between: 4 and 20 microm. The tubes diameter is strongly dependent on growth temperature. Our experimental results show evidence of a transition in the growth mechanism, from a tip growth to a base growth mode, as the decomposition temperature is increased. Preliminary spectroscopic measurements performed on these MWCNTs, show the unoccupied density of states has several resonances close to Fermi level, related both to the graphene electronic structure and the formation of the tube.     

Synthesis of multi-walled carbon nanotubes via pyrolysis of plastic waste using a two-stage process

The pyrolysis of different plastic waste types such as low density polyethylene (LDPE), high density polyethylene (HDPE), polypropylene (PP), polyethylene terephthalate (PET) and polystyrene (PS) for producing multi-walled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs) using a two-stage process has been investigated. Firstly, the cracking of plastic wastes was carried out at a temperature of 700°C to produce hydrocarbon gases. In the second stage, the produced hydrocarbon gases were decomposed at 650°C on the surface of the Ni-Mo/Al₂O₃ catalyst to form CNTs. Various analytical tools such as XRD, TPR, TGA, Raman spectroscopy and TEM were used to describe both the fresh catalyst and the obtained CNTs. The results showed that the amount of the hydrocarbon gases was related to the type of plastic waste and hence the CNT yield. Accordingly, LDPE or PP was decomposed to produce the largest gases yield of 72.5 or 70.7 wt%, respectively. As a result, a large CNTs yield of 5.8 and 5 g/g_cat can be achieved by pyrolysis of PP and LDPE waste, respectively. However, a small yield of CNTs with little quality and low purity was obtained by using PS or PET waste as the carbon feedstock.     

Nitrogen-doped carbon nanotubes from amine flames

A novel approach has been developed for synthesizing nitrogen-doped carbon nanotubes (N-CNTs) from flames using liquid amines as fuels, such as isopropylamine, n-propylamine and n-butylamine, which not only created a high reaction temperature but also provided a source of C and N. The microstructure and morphologies of the N-CNTs were characterized by scanning and transmission electron microscopy, laser Raman spectroscopy, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy. These N-CNTs were different from the conventional N-CNTs from a chemical vapor deposition process with primarily a 'pyridine-like' structure at N substitutions (one N atom only bonded to two C atoms). They were dominantly 'graphite-like' (one N atom substituted for C in graphite layers and bonded to three C atoms) with few C congruent N bonds due to the special formation conditions of high temperature and oxidative environment. It was found that: (1) amine fuel with a side chain structure was less suitable for preparation of orderly grown N-CNTs; (2) amine fuels with a higher N content generally introduced a larger quantity of N dopant; (3) the proportion of the 'graphite-like' N dopant decreased with increasing flame temperature, which provided a possibility for controllable N doping in N-CNTs from amine flames. The growth mechanism of the N-CNTs was also simulated and discussed.     

Multifunctional brushes made from carbon nanotubes

Brushes are common tools for use in industry and our daily life, performing a variety of tasks such as cleaning, scraping, applying and electrical contacts. Typical materials for constructing brush bristles include animal hairs, synthetic polymer fibres and metal wires (see, for example, ref. 1). The performance of these bristles has been limited by the oxidation and degradation of metal wires, poor strength of natural hairs, and low thermal stability of synthetic fibres. Carbon nanotubes, having a typical one-dimensional nanostructure, have excellent mechanical properties, such as high modulus and strength, high elasticity and resilience, thermal conductivity and large surface area (50-200 m2 g(-1)). Here we construct multifunctional, conductive brushes with carbon nanotube bristles grafted on fibre handles, and demonstrate their several unique tasks such as cleaning of nanoparticles from narrow spaces, coating of the inside of holes, selective chemical adsorption, and as movable electromechanical brush contacts and switches. The nanotube bristles can also be chemically functionalized for selective removal of heavy metal ions.     

Role of surface energy in the growth of carbon nanotubes via catalytic pyrolysis of hydrocarbons

We report an experimental study of carbon nanotube (CNT) growth via catalytic pyrolysis of acetylene. Surface free energy is shown to play a key role in determining the catalytic activity of the liquid droplet on the CNT tip and to be responsible for the constant nanotube diameter. A vapor-liquid-nanotube model is proposed for CNT growth.