Max Planck Institute of Colloids and Interfaces, Am Mühleberg 1, 14476 Potsdam (Germany).
Angew Chem Int Ed Engl. 2014 Jan 20;53(4):1062-6. doi: 10.1002/anie.201307459. Epub 2013 Dec 5.
The superior physical properties of carbon nanotubes (CNTs) have led to their broad application. Intrinsically, CNTs tend to agglomerate from hydrophobic interactions, which is highly undesirable for solution processing and device fabrication. Commonly, a stabilizer consisting of organic surfactants or polymers is used to disperse CNTs. Recently, we synthesized nitrogen-doped carbon hollow nanospheres (25-90 nm), termed carbon "nanobubbles". They bear superior dispersability in water and distinctive graphitic order. Herein, we describe the nanobubble-assisted dispersion of CNTs in aqueous solution upon sonication. This process relies on the π-π interaction between the two aromatic carbon nanostructures, which can process their carbon mixture in water into conductive filter membranes, ink, and discs. This stabilization can be extended to other aromatic carbons. In addition, the π-π interaction may create a new type of carbon p-n junction that can be used to improve charge separation.
碳纳米管 (CNTs) 的优异物理性能使其得到了广泛的应用。从本质上讲，CNTs 由于疏水相互作用容易团聚，这对于溶液处理和器件制造是极不理想的。通常，使用由有机表面活性剂或聚合物组成的稳定剂来分散 CNTs。最近，我们合成了氮掺杂的碳空心纳米球（25-90nm），称为碳“纳米气泡”。它们在水中具有优异的分散性和独特的石墨有序性。在此，我们描述了超声处理时纳米气泡辅助 CNT 在水溶液中的分散。这个过程依赖于两种芳香族碳纳米结构之间的π-π相互作用，可以将它们的碳混合物在水中加工成导电过滤膜、油墨和圆盘。这种稳定作用可以扩展到其他芳香族碳。此外，π-π 相互作用可能会产生一种新型的碳 p-n 结，可用于改善电荷分离。
