Carbon Nanotubes are obviously tube shaped materials, made of carbon, having a radius measuring on the nanometer scale. A nanometer is one billionth of a meter, or a bout one ten thousandth of the thickness of human air.

The nanotubes have a variety of different structures, differing in length, thickness and the type of helicity and number of layers. However, most of the carbon nanotubes are formed from the same graphite sheet essentially. The differences listed above are what lead to different electrical characteristics, being either the tube is a metal or a semiconductor. The nanotubes as a group range typically in diameter from 1nm up to 50nm. Ranging in length no more than a few microns normally, modern nanotubes have been able to be produced as much longer, now being measured in centimeters with new technology. The properties of these carbon nanotubes make them the ultimate in carbon fiber technology. They are a material which provides an incredibly unique balance of stiffness, strength and tenacity, and are also incredibly thermally and electrically conductive. These differences can be seen in the tables below:

[h=2]Table 1. Mechanical Properties of Engineering Fibers[/h][TABLE="class: renderedtable, width: 100%"]

[TR]

[TD]Fiber Material[/TD]

[TD]Specific Density[/TD]

[TD]E (TPa)[/TD]

[TD]Strenght (GPa)[/TD]

[TD]Strain at Break (%)[/TD]

[/TR]

[TR="class: bglight"]

[TD]Carbon Nanotube[/TD]

[TD]1.3 - 2[/TD]

[TD]1[/TD]

[TD]10 - 60[/TD]

[TD]10[/TD]

[/TR]

[TR="class: bgdark"]

[TD]HS Steel[/TD]

[TD]7.8[/TD]

[TD]0.2[/TD]

[TD]4.1[/TD]

[TD]< 10[/TD]

[/TR]

[TR="class: bglight"]

[TD]Carbon Fiber - PAN[/TD]

[TD]1.7 - 2[/TD]

[TD]0.2 - 0.6[/TD]

[TD]1.7 - 5[/TD]

[TD]0.3 - 2.4[/TD]

[/TR]

[TR="class: bgdark"]

[TD]Carbon Fiber - Pitch[/TD]

[TD]2 - 2.2[/TD]

[TD]0.4 - 0.96[/TD]

[TD]2.2 - 3.3[/TD]

[TD]0.27 - 0.6[/TD]

[/TR]

[TR="class: bglight"]

[TD]E/S - glass[/TD]

[TD]2.5[/TD]

[TD]0.07 / 0.08[/TD]

[TD]2.4 / 4.5[/TD]

[TD]4.8[/TD]

[/TR]

[TR="class: bgdark"]

[TD]Kevlar* 49[/TD]

[TD]1.4[/TD]

[TD]0.13[/TD]

[TD]3.6 - 4.1[/TD]

[TD]2.8

[/TD]

[/TR]

[/TABLE]

[h=2]Table 2. Transport Properties of Conductive Materials[/h][TABLE="class: renderedtable, width: 100%"]

[TR]

[TD]Material[/TD]

[TD]Thermal Conductivity (W/m.k)[/TD]

[TD]Electrical Conductivity[/TD]

[/TR]

[TR="class: bglight"]

[TD]Carbon Nanotubes[/TD]

[TD]> 3000[/TD]

[TD]106 - 107[/TD]

[/TR]

[TR="class: bgdark"]

[TD]Copper[/TD]

[TD]400[/TD]

[TD]6 x 107[/TD]

[/TR]

[TR="class: bglight"]

[TD]Carbon Fiber - Pitch[/TD]

[TD]1000[/TD]

[TD]2 - 8.5 x 106[/TD]

[/TR]

[TR="class: bgdark"]

[TD]Carbon Fiber - PAN[/TD]

[TD]8 - 105[/TD]

[TD]6.5 - 14 x 106[/TD]

[/TR]

[/TABLE]

These carbon nanotubes have proven and will continue to prove a valuable new technology to us. Potential applications include:

• Conductive plastics
  
• Structural composite materials
  
• Flat-panel displays
  
• Gas storage
  
• Antifouling paint
  
• Micro- and nano-electronics
  
• Radar-absorbing coating
  
• Technical textiles
  
• Ultra-capacitors
  
• Atomic Force Microscope (AFM) tips
  
• Batteries with improved lifetime
  
• Biosensors for harmful gases
  
  
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    • Extra strong fibers
      
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