A route towards metal-free electrical cables via carbon nanotube wires
Carbon nanotubes (CNTs) have unique properties with promise to outperform the electrical characteristics of bulk copper, giving rise to its primary driver for use in electronic devices. The challenge still hindering their full exploitation stems from an inability to manufacture them to long lengths,...
| Main Authors: | , , , , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Elsevier
2022-04-01
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| Series: | Carbon Trends |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2667056922000153 |
| _version_ | 1818495243427774464 |
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| author | Simon G. King Wesley G. Buxton Kaspar Snashall Bobur Mirkhaydarov Maxim Shkunov S. Ravi P. Silva Vlad Stolojan |
| author_facet | Simon G. King Wesley G. Buxton Kaspar Snashall Bobur Mirkhaydarov Maxim Shkunov S. Ravi P. Silva Vlad Stolojan |
| author_sort | Simon G. King |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Carbon nanotubes (CNTs) have unique properties with promise to outperform the electrical characteristics of bulk copper, giving rise to its primary driver for use in electronic devices. The challenge still hindering their full exploitation stems from an inability to manufacture them to long lengths, resulting in a requirement to align and entwine them into a yarn or wire. There have been several methods presented in achieving this, however, the common disadvantage has been that they are only applicable to specific types and morphologies of CNTs. In the work reported here, using electrospinning as a universally applicable route for any CNT type, we re-engineer and optimise the various formulation, fabrication and processing steps required to manufacture CNT wires. Through a series of investigations using a materials agnostic approach, we experimentally probe the choice of solvent, surfactant and thermal treatment temperature of the CNT inks, demonstrating the CNT-type optimum using a range of commercially available single- double- and multiwalled CNTs. Finally, this allowed us to develop and probe an electrical conditioning process to further enhance the electrical performance, achieving the highest reported un-doped electrical conductivity of 36,000 S⋅m− 1 for electrospun CNT wires, or a specific conductivity of 0.2×106S·m−1/g·cm−3. |
| first_indexed | 2024-12-10T18:17:54Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-e18c58dab0ed4089acb9e84e56cfb154 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2667-0569 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-12-10T18:17:54Z |
| publishDate | 2022-04-01 |
| publisher | Elsevier |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Carbon Trends |
| spelling | doaj.art-e18c58dab0ed4089acb9e84e56cfb1542022-12-22T01:38:18ZengElsevierCarbon Trends2667-05692022-04-017100159A route towards metal-free electrical cables via carbon nanotube wiresSimon G. King0Wesley G. Buxton1Kaspar Snashall2Bobur Mirkhaydarov3Maxim Shkunov4S. Ravi P. Silva5Vlad Stolojan6Advanced Technology Institute, Department of Electrical and Electronic Engineering, University of Surrey, Guildford, Surrey, GU2 7XH, UKAdvanced Technology Institute, Department of Electrical and Electronic Engineering, University of Surrey, Guildford, Surrey, GU2 7XH, UKAdvanced Technology Institute, Department of Electrical and Electronic Engineering, University of Surrey, Guildford, Surrey, GU2 7XH, UKAdvanced Technology Institute, Department of Electrical and Electronic Engineering, University of Surrey, Guildford, Surrey, GU2 7XH, UKAdvanced Technology Institute, Department of Electrical and Electronic Engineering, University of Surrey, Guildford, Surrey, GU2 7XH, UKAdvanced Technology Institute, Department of Electrical and Electronic Engineering, University of Surrey, Guildford, Surrey, GU2 7XH, UKAdvanced Technology Institute, Department of Electrical and Electronic Engineering, University of Surrey, Guildford, Surrey, GU2 7XH, UK; Corresponding author.Carbon nanotubes (CNTs) have unique properties with promise to outperform the electrical characteristics of bulk copper, giving rise to its primary driver for use in electronic devices. The challenge still hindering their full exploitation stems from an inability to manufacture them to long lengths, resulting in a requirement to align and entwine them into a yarn or wire. There have been several methods presented in achieving this, however, the common disadvantage has been that they are only applicable to specific types and morphologies of CNTs. In the work reported here, using electrospinning as a universally applicable route for any CNT type, we re-engineer and optimise the various formulation, fabrication and processing steps required to manufacture CNT wires. Through a series of investigations using a materials agnostic approach, we experimentally probe the choice of solvent, surfactant and thermal treatment temperature of the CNT inks, demonstrating the CNT-type optimum using a range of commercially available single- double- and multiwalled CNTs. Finally, this allowed us to develop and probe an electrical conditioning process to further enhance the electrical performance, achieving the highest reported un-doped electrical conductivity of 36,000 S⋅m− 1 for electrospun CNT wires, or a specific conductivity of 0.2×106S·m−1/g·cm−3.http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2667056922000153Carbon nanotubesWiresElectrospinningSolventSurfactantConductivity |
| spellingShingle | Simon G. King Wesley G. Buxton Kaspar Snashall Bobur Mirkhaydarov Maxim Shkunov S. Ravi P. Silva Vlad Stolojan A route towards metal-free electrical cables via carbon nanotube wires Carbon Trends Carbon nanotubes Wires Electrospinning Solvent Surfactant Conductivity |
| title | A route towards metal-free electrical cables via carbon nanotube wires |
| title_full | A route towards metal-free electrical cables via carbon nanotube wires |
| title_fullStr | A route towards metal-free electrical cables via carbon nanotube wires |
| title_full_unstemmed | A route towards metal-free electrical cables via carbon nanotube wires |
| title_short | A route towards metal-free electrical cables via carbon nanotube wires |
| title_sort | route towards metal free electrical cables via carbon nanotube wires |
| topic | Carbon nanotubes Wires Electrospinning Solvent Surfactant Conductivity |
| url | http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2667056922000153 |
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