FUEL 180 |
| Discotic naphthalene polymer is filled into multiwall nanotube cavities and custom-fabricated ultrafine (5-20 nm) alumina nanochannels. We directly observe a unique liquid crystal pattern within MWNT cavities due to the high elastic strain associated with curvature at the 5 nm length scale. The ultrafine alumina templates are used to make 5 nm diameter platelet-symmetry carbon nanofibers, which show unique reconstruction features on their all-edge surfaces. At lower formation temperatures, well-defined odd-numbered nested loop-like structures are observed involving 3,5, or 7 exposed graphene edge planes with an unsatisfied “orphan” layer in the center. In contrast, high temperature annealing favors even-numbered hairpin-like loops. In both cases these loops are themselves half-nanotubes that wrap around the nanofiber in three dimensions to eliminate a maximum number of exposed edge sites. The results also show a close relationship between hydrophobicity and surface reconstruction features. |
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Chemistry and Applications of Carbon Nanotubes and Nanoparticles
9:00 AM-11:50 AM, Wednesday, 13 September 2006 Palace -- Napa Room, Oral
Sci-Mix
Division of Fuel Chemistry |