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[Nov 2005]
New Manufacturing Process Enables Larger Nanotube Production Volumes
High quality carbon nanotubes (CNTs) can now be manufactured on an industrial scale at considerably lower cost than ever before, says Bayer MaterialScience AG (Leverkusen, Germany), which plans to market the nano-sized materials world-wide under the trade name Baytubes.
The new process for manufacturing Baytubes was developed in collaboration with Bayer Technology Services GmbH, a Bayer Group service company with a wealth of know-how in process technology. Until now, added the company, the high price of up to 1,000 euro per kilo and the fluctuating production quality have prevented more widespread use of nanotubes.
"For the first time, we can achieve consistent material purity of over 99 percent and significantly reduce manufacturing costs," said Martin Schmid, Head of the Carbon Nanotubes project at Bayer MaterialScience. "Adding just small quantities of Baytubes can make a plastic car fender so electrically conductive that it can be painted without any further pre-treatment, using environmentally friendly waterborne or powder coatings.
"In a similar manner, we can make films for antistatic packaging materials, such as those used for sophisticated electronic components."
Another possibility is the electromagnetic interference (EMI) shielding of computer and mobile telephone housings. In future, CNTs could also improve the thermal conductivity of ceramic components in turbines.
"Baytubes brand carbon nanotubes are multi-walled tubes comprising up to 15 graphite layers," explained Dr Sigurd Buchholz, Project Head at Bayer Technology Services. "Chemically speaking, the material is identical to pencil lead. The nanotubes have a maximum mean diameter of 50 nanometers, meaning they are more than 10,000 times thinner than a human hair. If one of these tubes were enlarged to the size of a drinking straw, it would be up to 250 meters long."
Custom-made CNTs with different diameters, lengths and wall thicknesses can be produced for any application by selecting the corresponding catalyst.
www.baytubes.de
ENDS