Electrochemical oxidation of multi-wall carbon nanotubes

The electrochemical modification of carbon nanotube films (buckypapers) in three different electrolytes consisting of two acids and a basic solvent at very low concentrations was studied. The electrolysis was performed at 1 A up to a maximum of 12 h. Four different characterization techniques have been employed for assessing the effectiveness of the proposed process. The results presented are very encouraging for the development of electrochemical oxidation as the main surface modification method for carbon nanotubes. It was found that the use of nitric acid electrolyte leads to scalable and controllable oxidation as compared to the basic electrolyte which was also effective but appeared to damage the graphitic structure of nanotubes during longer treatments. (C) 2011 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.