Patent ID: 7837905
Filing Date: 2010-11-23
Classification: B82Y,D01F,Y10T

Abstract:
1. A method of producing a stabilized filament including doubly-embedded nanotubes, comprising: mixing a monomer of polyacrylonitrile (PAN), open-ended nanotubes and a catalyst into a polymer precursor; dissolving the PAN monomer and catalyst in a solvent to fill the open nanotubes with monomer and catalyst; polymerizing the precursor to form a nanotube-polymer composite of polymer chains formed from the monomer with the nanotubes embedded therein, said composite including polymer chains both outside the nanotubes and inside and extending through the open-ended nanotubes; forming the nanotube-polymer composite into a filament; processing the filament to create polymer-to-polymer bonds between polymer chains inside and outside the nanotubes and polymer-to-nanotube bonds between polymer chains both inside and outside of the nanotubes and the nanotubes to form a stabilized filament in which the nanotubes are doubly-embedded; and heating the stabilized filament to produce a carbonized filament in which the nanotubes are doubly-embedded.