Buckypaper from thin multiwalled carbon nanotubes

Abstract

We report on the fabrication of a buckypaper from thin multiwalled carbon nanotubes modified with hydroxyl groups (t-MWCNTs-OH), which was achieved by hydrogen-bond driven assembly of t-MWCNTs-OH. Although the carboxyl-containing t-MWNTs exist in a typical entangled state within the film, it was found that hydroxyl-containing t-MWCNTs can assemble into bundle structures induced by the intermolecular hydrogen bonds upon densification of the carbon nanotube (CNT) suspension. The upshift of the G band in the Raman spectra and the enhanced hydrogen bonds in FTIR spectra of the spray coated nanotube films illustrate the assembly of hydroxyl-containing t-MWCNTs through hydrogen bonding. The assembled structure was also visualized by electron microscopy analysis. This is the first report in which a flexible buckypaper was fabricated with the t-MWCNTs using a conventional filtration method without a special mechanical trick.