AMN Seminar Series: Concentration-driven Assembly of One-Dimensional Materials: From Structure to Applications

About event

One-dimensional materials such as carbon nanotubes (CNTs) and graphene nanoribbons (GNRs) have been extensively studied in recent decades. However, their dispersions, especially at high concentrations, remain a significant bottleneck limiting practical applications. Typically, these materials can be dispersed at low concentrations through the addition of surfactants or by using harsh solvents. We have reported a novel assembly behavior of these materials by adjusting the concentration. Notably, three-dimensional scaffold structures can form under appropriate dispersion conditions, leading to stable gel-like dispersions exhibiting viscoelastic rheological behavior. The concentration of the dispersion can reach between 50 mg/mL and 100 mg/mL, far surpassing the dispersion capabilities of previous methods. More importantly, this gel-like behavior can be achieved in various organic solvents and water. Motivated by these advantages, highly concentrated CNT or GNR hydrogels can be utilized for various applications, including membranes, battery binders, electro-catalyst binders, and polymer composites, which will be briefly discussed in this talk.