Gemini Surfactants as Dispersants of Multiwalled Carbon Nanotubes : a Systematic Study on the Role of Molecular Structure

• Surfactants have been widely used as non-covalent dispersants of carbon nanotubes and yet a deeper and systematic understanding of the role of their molecular properties on dispersibility still awaits consensus. Herein, we report on the dispersibility of multiwalled carbon nanotubes (MWNTs) using a set of dicationic gemini surfactants of the n-s-n type, where both the length of the covalent spacer (s) that bridges the two cationic headgroups and the length of the tails (n) are systematically varied. Thus, 12-s-12 gemini with s = 2, 6, and 12 are studied together with 16-s-16 (s = 2 and 12). In addition, the single-tailed homologues dodecyltrimethylammonium bromide, DTAB (n = 12), and cetyltrimethylammonium bromide, CTAB (n = 16), are employed for comparisons. High precision dispersion curves (dispersed NT vs. surfactant concentration) are presented, obtained through a well-controlled sonication/centrifugation procedure combined with an accurate determination of MWNT concentration. The gemini amphiphiles, despite being double-tailed and double-charged, are found to be less effective dispersants than CTAB and roughly as effective as DTAB. Among the gemini, the following pattern emerges as concerning dispersion behavior. (i) The tail length, n, is less influential than spacer length, s, in dispersing ability, implying that the spacer hydrophobicity rather than that of the tail may govern the affinity for the nanotube surface. (ii) In the 12-s-12 series, the surfactant concentration needed for maximum MWNT dispersibility depends linearly on s, while it is known that the neat cmc depends non-monotonically on s. (iii) Similarly to single-tailed ionic surfactants, the presence of micelles has no direct effect on the dispersion behavior. In combination, these observations also point to an adsorption mechanism that does not involve the formation of micelle-like aggregates on the nanotube surface but rather coverage by individual dispersant molecules.

Ämnesord

NATURVETENSKAP  -- Kemi -- Fysikalisk kemi (hsv//swe)

NATURAL SCIENCES  -- Chemical Sciences -- Physical Chemistry (hsv//eng)

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