Threadlike carbon nanotube fiber combines strength, flexibility and conductivity
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This light bulb is powered and held in place by two thin strands of carbon nanotube fibers
Cross section of a test fiber, which was taken with a scanning electron microscope, shows only a few open gaps inside the fiber
Rice engineering professor Matteo Pasquali (seated) with (from left) Rice graduate students Colin Young and Dmitri Tsentalovich, Teijin Aramid scientist Ron ter Waarbeek and Rice graduate student Mohammed Adnan
Two strands of the new CNT fiber support and supply current to an LED bulb
Two strands of the new CNT fiber support and supply current to an LED bulb
A spool of around 50 m (164 ft) of the new CNT fiber
A spool with around 50 m (164 ft) of the new threadlike carbon nanotube fiber
Article Summary
At about 100 times the strength of steel at one sixth the weight and with impressive electrical conductive properties, carbon nanotubes (CNTs) have promised much since their discovery in 1991. The problem has been translating their impressive nanoscale properties into real-world applications on the macro scale. Researchers have now unveiled a new CNT fiber that conducts heat and electricity like a metal wire, is very strong like carbon fiber, and is flexible like a textile thread.
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