Improved properties, increased production, and the path to broad adoption of carbon nanotube fibers

Abstract

We report on the latest properties of solution spun carbon nanotube fiber (CNTF) and discuss these results in the context of the field of CNTF, as well as the broader field of high-performance fibers. Using high aspect ratio, high purity carbon nanotubes (CNTs), we have produced neat CNTF with an electrical conductivity of 10.9 MS/m and a tensile strength of 4.2 GPa. We find that properties for solution spun CNTF have doubled every three years since the first reports in the mid-2000s. Companies are driving up the scale and lowering the costs of CNT and CNTF production. If the recent improvement trends in properties, cost, and scale can be sustained for the next several years, CNTF will be uniquely poised for large-scale market adoption.