Enhancing the Electrical Conductivity and Strength of PET by Single-Wall Carbon Nanotube Film Coating.

Single-wall carbon nanotubes (SWCNTs) with excellent physicochemical properties are considered a promising candidate for the electrical and mechanical reinforcements of polymers. However, the poor dispersion of SWCNTs in plastics seriously limits their application and their achieved performance enhancement. Here, we coat a freestanding, highly conductive SWCNT film onto the surface of a polyethylene terephthalate (PET) film by a hot-pressing method.

Single-Walled Carbon Nanotube/Copper Core-Shell Fibers with a High Specific Electrical Conductivity.

Carbon nanotube (CNT)/Cu core-shell fibers are a promising material for lightweight conductors due to their higher conductivity than pure CNT fibers and lower density than traditional Cu wires. However, the electrical properties of the hybrid fiber have been unsatisfactory, mainly because of the weak CNT-Cu interfacial interaction. Here we report the fabrication of a single-walled CNT (SWCNT)/Cu core-shell fiber that outperforms commercial Cu wires in terms of specific electrical conductivity and current carrying capacity.