Carbon Nanotube Ring Synthesis

Carbon nanotubes (CNTs) are single layer carbon sheets with closed ends formed into cylindrical tubes. Covalent C-C bonds place CNTs among the strongest materials with extremely high tensile strength, making the materials ideal for mechanical applications. CNTs also show great promise in electronics, optics and sensors due to the nature of sp² bonded carbon atoms and other physical properties. The unique properties of CNTs have garnered much academic interest and much effort has been focused on developing applications that could improve drug delivery techniques, polymers and other technologies.   Research shows that CNTs can be formed into ring structures that have unique and important properties, different from nanotubes. The previous attempts at synthesis of the rings have been done with acids, which compromises the properties of the CNTs. In order to retain the physical properties of the rings, a synthetic method that does not rely on acid would be beneficial. The focus of my work is to refine a newly developed method that has been shown to produce high quality rings.  In addition to improving the synthesis I will develop a method to isolate the rings and perform a comprehensive characterization of the ring’s physical properties, e.g., magnetic moment and electrical conductivity.