Sodium Hypochlorite and Sodium Bromide Individualized and Stabilized Carbon Nanotubes in Water

Xuezhu Xu, Jian Zhou, Veronica Colombo, Yangyang Xin, Ran Tao, Gilles Lubineau*

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

4 Scopus citations

Abstract

Aggregation is a major problem for hydrophobic carbon nanomaterials such as carbon nanotubes (CNTs) in water because it reduces the effective particle concentration, prevents particles from entering the medium, and leads to unstable electronic device performances when a colloidal solution is used. Molecular ligands such as surfactants can help the particles to disperse, but they tend to degrade the electrical properties of CNTs. Therefore, self-dispersed particles without the need for surfactant are highly desirable. We report here, for the first time to our knowledge, that CNT particles with negatively charged hydrophobic/water interfaces can easily self-disperse themselves in water via pretreating the nanotubes with a salt solution with a low concentration of sodium hypochlorite (NaClO) and sodium bromide (NaBr). The obtained aqueous CNT suspensions exhibit stable and superior colloidal performances. A series of pH titration experiments confirmed the presence and role of the electrical double layers on the surface of the salted carbon nanotubes and of functional groups and provided an in-depth understanding of the phenomenon.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Pages (from-to)10868-10876
Number of pages9
JournalLANGMUIR
Volume33
Issue number41
DOIs
StatePublished - Oct 17 2017

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • General Materials Science
  • Condensed Matter Physics
  • Surfaces and Interfaces
  • Spectroscopy
  • Electrochemistry

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