Biscrolling Nanopowders and Carbon Nanotube Sheets into Fibers, Yarns and Textiles

Description:

Non-Confidential Description:

The technology is the first known method to spin biscrolled fibers/yarns from nanopowder materials using carbon nanotube (CNT) sheets as the host. Nanopowder materials (nanoparticles, nanofibers) are loaded onto the CNT sheets to form bi-layered sheets, which are then scrolled into fibers. A key advantage of this technology is that it enables the functional nanopowder to be the largest component of the yarns constituting 95-99% (by weight) of the yarn, thereby ensuring that the properties exhibited by the yarn are largely those of the nanopowder. Nanopowders with different functional properties can be used to synthesize a wide variety of yarns that can function as supercapacitors, superconducting fibers, magnetic fibers, flexible battery electrodes etc. The biscrolled fibers are also easily weavable into textiles and the nanopowder is enclosed within the matrix of the yarn so efficiently that fabrics incorporating the yarn can be machine-washed with minimal loss of the nanopowder.

Background:

Currently the use of nanopowder materials with desirable functional properties in various applications is very limited due to the inability to spin these materials into fibers/yarns. Methods used to incorporate nanopowders into spun fibers have also been largely unsuccessful due to the inability to load large enough amounts of these nanopowders onto fibers. The current breakthrough biscrolling technology has made nanopowders accessible to a number of different industries by enabling the synthesis of multifunctional fibers/yarns from any nanopowder material.

Potential Benefits:

· Versatile method: Yarns/fibers can be synthesized from any material in powdered form

· Multifunctional products: Method can be used to fabricate yarns with diverse functions

· Superior product properties: Nanopowder constitutes up to 99% of yarn weight. Minimal loss of incorporated nanopowder in textiles after routine washing

Potential Applications:

· Superconducting fibers: Used in electronic devices, power lines

· Energy storage: Used in lithium ion batteries; supercapacitors; electronic garments that store energy

· Catalytic oxygen electrodes: Used in fuel cells

· Textiles: self-cleaning textiles that protect against biological hazards

· Drug delivery: Controlled delivery of pharmaceuticals during treatment

Publication:

Márcio D. Lima, Shaoli Fang, Xavier Lepró, Chihye Lewis, Raquel Ovalle-Robles, Javier Carretero-González, Elizabeth Castillo-Martínez, Mikhail E. Kozlov, Jiyoung Oh, Neema Rawat, Carter S. Haines, Mohammad H. Haque, Vaishnavi Aare, Stephanie Stoughton, Anvar A. Zakhidov and Ray H. Baughman, Biscrolling Nanotube Sheets and Functional Guests into Yarns, Science 331, 51 pp (2011)

IP Status:

Utility patent 8,968,756, issued on March 3, 2015.

United States patent 9,243,351 issued January 26, 2016.

United States patent 9,502,711 issued November 22, 2016.