Carbon nanotubes have now been a subject of intense research for approaching two decades. Although a short time relative to most conventional materials, much hype about the intrinsic properties of this material has now been substantiated by experiment. The results are conclusive that carbon nanotubes are truly phenomenal materials with highly desirable mechanical, electrical and thermal properties. Furthermore, multiwall carbon nanotubes (MWNTs) have emerged as the most economically viable and abundant form of carbon nanotubes, and therefore the most likely candidate for application. The key materials engineering challenge remains in effectively transferring their properties to macro-scale materials in the form of composites. It is here that research merges with application. This dissertation has therefore been directed to focus on carbon nanotube composites in an applied sense. Here, the state of the art is reviewed, and experimental results of carefully selected composite systems, studied in detail for (1) mechanical, (2) electrical and (3) thermal properties, are presented and discussed. In terms of mechanical properties, the effects of MWNTs for augmentation of the tensile properties of PAN-based carbon fiber, and fatigue performance of poly(methyl methacrylate) are investigated and reported. In MWNT composite PAN-based carbon fiber, the formation of an ordered interphase layer sheathing the nanotubes was observed in fracture surfaces, which indicated a clear importance of their function to template the growth of carbon formation in the PAN-based matrix fiber. These structures open up a route to nano-scale tailorability of the crystallographic morphology of the composite fibers. Large improvements in fatigue performance were observed in MWNT/PMMA composites compared to MWNT/chopped carbon fiber composites, and attributed to the nanometer scale dimensions of the MWNTs enabling them to mitigate submicron damage such as polymer crazing. In terms of electrical and thermal properties, MWNT/epoxy composites were superior to MWNT/carbon black composites. Furthermore, extremely large improvements in the thermal conductivity of epoxy were observed for epoxy-infiltrated aligned MWNT arrays. The alignment of the MWNTs was shown to play a dominant role in enabling the improvement. Finally, these results, in concert with the literature are discussed in terms of the application of carbon nanotubes in engineering materials.

Thermoelectric generators are solid state machines used to convert temperature gradients into electrical energy. They are formed by several thermoelectric units connected electrically in series and thermally in parallel. These units are made by creating a junction between a p-type and an n-type conductor. This investigation documents the characterisation of the thermoelectric properties of carbon nanotube (CNT) films and the fabrication process of carbon nanotube-based thermoelectric devices. The Seebeck coefficient is a intrinsic property of a thermoelectric material that correlates the voltage produced by a conductor and the temperature gradient applied to it. To measure the Seebeck coefficient of films, an experimental set-up was fabricated and calibrated using constantan as standard material. CNT films of aligned nanotubes fabricated using a chemical vapour deposition method were analysed. The Seebeck coefficient along and across the samples did not show significant variations, with values between 40$\mu$V/K and 80$\mu$V/K. Using these CNT films, thermoelectric cells were fabricated with the CNT as the p-type conductor and constantan as the n-type. As a proof of concept, two hand-made thermoelectric generators were assembled by connecting hundreds of these thermoelectric cells. These devices were subjected to a temperature gradient of $\approx$200K, which was enough to produce enough power to light an LED. Other analytical techniques were used to characterise the materials used in this work. Electrical conductivity measurements, thermogravimetric analysis, Raman spectroscopy and scanning electron microscopy were performed. Using a deposition technique, films of nanotubes were produced from a liquid phase. The impact of the production method on their properties was evaluated. Characterisation equipment was developed to measure the Seebeck coefficient and thermal conductivity. Thermoelectric devices made with the carbon nanotube films were fabricated and characterised. The values of thermal conductivity of the CNT films analysed in this work are between 0.86Wm$^{-1}$K$^{-1}$. The electrical conductivity of these materials is between 3500Sm$^{-1}$ and 14100Sm$^{-1}$. The maximum figure of merit of the carbon nanotube thermoelectric devices fabricated in this work is $ZT$=0.35.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of North Texas, May, 2004. / Title from title page display. Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--State University of New York at Binghamton, Materials Science and Engineering Program, 2009. / Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Texas at Austin, 2007. / Vita. Includes bibliographical references.

This report details work toward the fabrication of a single-electron transistor created from a single-walled carbon nanotube (SWNT). Specifically discussed is a method for growing carbon nanotubes (CNTs) via carbon vapor deposition (CVD). The growth is catalyzed by a solution of 0.02g Fe(NO3)3·9H2O, 0.005g MoO2(acac)2, and 0.015g of alumina particles in 15mL methanol. SWNT diameter ranges from 0.6 to 3.0 nm. Also discussed is a method to control nanotube growth location by patterning samples with small islands of catalyst. A novel “maskless” photolithographic process is used to focus light from a lightweight commercial digital projector through a microscope. Catalyst islands created by this method are approximately 400 μm2 in area.

Submitted by Rosivalda Pereira (mrs.pereira@ufma.br) on 2017-06-06T19:33:29Z No. of bitstreams: 1 EdvanMoreira.pdf: 4583939 bytes, checksum: 5ab3a481fd56c037eec7e3edec77e8b9 (MD5) / Made available in DSpace on 2017-06-06T19:33:29Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 EdvanMoreira.pdf: 4583939 bytes, checksum: 5ab3a481fd56c037eec7e3edec77e8b9 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2008-03-31 / Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa e ao Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico do Maranhão (FAPEMA) / From its discovery, the nanotubes of carbon are seen as material’s highly promising for a lot of applications. The combination of nanotubes of carbon with other molecules is the most general form of modifying their properties. New methods to control and to tune these properties are necessary for the developing of their potentials applications. The functionalization has been proposed as one of the processes capable to modify the optical properties of the nanotubes of carbon, through chemical reaction ”it is arrested”another molecule in the surface of the nanotube. However, another more elegant form of functionalization is through the encapsulation of molecules inside the nanotube. Recently, the encapsulation of the molecule of the beta-carotene experimentally in nanotubes of carbon was accomplished and changes were verified in the absorption spectrum. In this work we performed simulations of molecular dynamics using field of similar universal force to test the encapsulation of the beta-carotene, and calculations of Electronic Structure to verify charge transference. The obtained results of the molecular dynamics confirm that the encapsulation of the -carotene happens in the three cases studied experimentally by Yanagi and collaborators. / Desde sua descoberta, os nanotubos de carbono são vistos como um material altamente promissor para muitas aplicações. A combinação de nanotubos de carbono com outra molécula é a forma mais geral de se modificar suas propriedades. Novos métodos para controlar e sintonizar estas propriedades são necessários afim de se desenvolver suas potenciais aplicações. A funcionalização tem sido proposta como um dos processos capaz de se modificar as propriedades ópticas dos nanotubos de carbono, através de reação química ”prende-se”a outra molécula na superfície do nanotubo. Entretanto, uma outra forma mais elegante de funcionalização se dá através do encapsulamento de moléculas no interior do nanotubo. Recentemente, foi realizado experimentalmente o encapsulamento da molécula do beta-caroteno em nanotubos de carbono e foram constatadas mudanças no espectro de absorção. Neste trabalho realizamos simulações de dinâmica molecular usando campo de força universal afim de verificar se o encapsulamento do beta-caroteno ocorre, e cálculos de Estrutura Eletrônica para verificar se há ou não transferências de carga no sistema. Os resultados obtidos da dinâmica molecular confirmam que o encapsulamento do beta-caroteno ocorre nos 3 casos reportados experimentalmente por Yanagi e colaboradores.

No description available.

The objective of my work was to develop HDPE clay nanocomposites for packaging with superior barrier (gas and water) properties by economical processing technique. This work also represents a comparative study of thermoplastic nanocomposites for packaging based on linear low density polyethylene (LLDPE), high density polyethylene (HDPE) and Nylon12. In this study properties and processing of a series of linear low density polyethylene (LLDPE), high density polyethylene (HDPE) and Nylon 12 nanocomposites based on Na-MMT clay and two different aspect ratio grades of kaolinite clay are discussed.