Double-walled carbon nanotube dispersion via surfactant substitution

Abstract

A new approach for the stabilisation of double-walled carbon nanotubes in aqueous media was developed. A low molecular weight surfactant was used in the first stage for the debundling of the nanotubes followed by substitution with a higher molecular weight surfactant or non-ionic surfactants. Dispersions were characterized by optical density measurements, SEM and DLS. The presence of remaining low molecular weight surfactant was investigated by FT-IR. Double walled carbon nanotube dispersions showed good dispersion stability and non-detectable amounts of the initial surfactant, which was completely removed. Such a method could be useful for preparation of stable aqueous dispersions of carbon nanotubes with low concentration of surfactants, which is especially important for toxicity studies.