Baytubes
Bayer (the same company that makes the aspirin) is now beginning to manufacture multi-walled carbon nanotubes in industrial quantities. The pilot plant will produce 200 tons per year, and the market is expected to grow at 25% per year.
The MWCNTs are for materials use, meaning mostly fiber-reinforced composites, e.g. airplanes, tennis racquets, arrows,
and the like. The major advantages over conventional polymers / fibers is that the CNTs are stronger and conductive (both electrically and thermally) — producing a plastic that is more like metal in many ways, but still much lighter. The conductivity is supposed to be comparable to copper, i.e. good enough to use as wiring in many applications. Looking at the data for CNTs as a polymer additive, the major effect on mechanical properties was to make them less stretchy (and about 10% stronger), while having a major effect on conductivity properties. Nobody has yet, as far as I know, managed to figure out how to make a composite that has the really high tensile strength possibilities of the raw nanotubes. Alternatively, CNTs in light metal matrices such as aluminum or magnesium seems to have significant possibilities. Time will tell — but there’s still a major advance to be made.
The individual CNTs in the mix are on average 8 or so walls, 15 nm diameter, and over a micron long (i.e. an aspect ratio of at least 60 and probably in the hundreds).
February 2nd, 2010 at 8:12 AM
This is very good and very cool news! Josh and all, I have two questions:
1 Do you think these carbon MWNT and also SWNT could be used to reinforce steel in cutting tools like scissors and knives or more work needs to be done for that?
2 Would you say these materials would satisfy the requirement to have a “plassteel” material that so far has existed only in scifi: A material that has the strength and hardness of metal with the flexibility and rustproof lightness of polymers?
February 2nd, 2010 at 1:30 PM
I hope those things don’t give me cancer or ruin my liver.
[Well, then ... DON't EAT IT. The same way you wouldn't eat structural steel. Besides, Bayer is a drug company, for crissakes. They're used to testing their stuff absolutely up the wazoo for the slightest ill effect -- and Germany is the greeniest of the greens. So frankly, I wouldn't worry. --jsh]
February 3rd, 2010 at 5:03 AM
Erin: 1. No, carbon dissolves in steel, so the CNTs would disappear. They are used in aluminum etc, as I noted. 2. Not yet — nobody’s figured out how to formulate the plastic in such a way as to get the strength of the CNTs to show up in the final product.
February 3rd, 2010 at 6:56 AM
Does anyone know how they really apply these CNT to aluminium? Is it an alloy or something like that? or is it like a coating??
(sorry im not 100% english speaker, but i hope my questions are clear)
Thanks a lot!
Francisco
[It's a composite, like fiberglass: they stir the CNTs into molten aluminum (in effect), and then cast or extrude or whatever. -jsh]
February 3rd, 2010 at 4:26 PM
Besides, Bayer still sells ddt in any country that will let them.
February 3rd, 2010 at 8:04 PM
Josh what do you think of this buckytube steel technology? I was reading about it and excited about it but I have not seen alot of new developments.
http://worldandi.misto.cz/_MAIL_/article/nsapr99.html
I still am very impressed with your discussions on diamondoid chainsaws that fold up, and the air car, in your book “NanoFuture”. Planning to write a sequel any time soon?
January 16th, 2012 at 8:26 PM
Do you know if this material can be used for heat sinks?