1.

INTRODUCTION

Buckypaper is a thin sheet made from an aggregate of carbon nanotubes. The

nanotubes are approximately 50,000 times thinner than a human hair. Originally, it was
fabricated as a way to handle carbon nanotubes, but it is also being studied and developed
into applications by several research groups, showing promise as vehicle armor, personal
armor, and next-generation electronics and displays.
Carbon nanotubes (CNTs) possess great potential for developing highperformance and multifunctional nanocomposites for a wide variety of applications. As
the cost of producing CNT buckypaper, a thin film of CNT networks, continues to
decrease while the quality increases, more users and companies are becoming interested
in buckypaper for potential applications. Many of these applications, such as
electromagnetic interference (EMI) shielding and fire retardant surface skins for fiberreinforced composites or plastics, may not require buckypaper-based composites to be
much stronger compared to fiber-reinforced composites. This means that there is a market
for buckypaper even without its theoretical super strength, but desired functionality.
The experimental results show that buckypapers have very low permeability,
about 8-12 orders lower than those of carbon fiber preform cases, and also sensitive to
liquid polarity due to their nanoscale porosity and large surface area. Both solution and
resin film transfer prepregging processes were studied to pre-impregnate buckypaper to
achieve 50 wt. % CNT concentration. The late one showed better quality in the resultant
nanocomposites, but difficult for high viscosity resins. Three case studies were also
conducted to demonstrate quality and property consistency of buckypaper composites.

2. LITERATURE SURVEY
2.1

BACKGROUND

2.1.1 CARBON NANOTUBES

Carbon nanotubes (CNTs) are

allotropes of carbon

with a

cylindrical

nanostructure. Nanotubes have been constructed with length-to-diameter ratio of up to

132,000,000:1, significantly

larger

cylindrical carbon molecules have

than
unusual

for nanotechnology, electronics, optics and

for

any

other

properties,
other

fields

which

material.
are

of materials

These
valuable

science and

technology. In particular, owing to their extraordinary thermal conductivity and

mechanical and electrical properties, carbon nanotubes find applications as additives to
various structural materials. For instance, nanotubes form a tiny portion of the material(s)
in some (primarily carbon fiber) baseball bats, golf clubs, or car parts.
Nanotubes are members of the fullerene structural family. Their name is derived
from their long, hollow structure with the walls formed by one-atom-thick sheets of
carbon, called graphene. These sheets are rolled at specific and discrete ("chiral") angles,
and the combination of the rolling angle and radius decides the nanotube properties; for
example, whether the individual nanotube shell is a metal or semiconductor. Nanotubes
are

categorized

as single-walled

nanotubes (SWNTs)

and multi-walled

nanotubes (MWNTs). Individual nanotubes naturally align themselves into "ropes" held
together by van der Waals forces, more specifically, pi-stacking.
Applied quantum chemistry, specifically, orbital hybridization best describes
chemical bonding in nanotubes. The chemical bonding of nanotubes is composed entirely
of sp2 bonds, similar to those of graphite. These bonds, which are stronger than
the sp3 bondsfound in alkanes and diamond, provide nanotubes with their unique
strength.
2

2.1.2 BUCKMINISTER FULLERENE

Buckminster Fullerene (or bucky-ball) is a spherical fullerene molecule with the

formula C60. It has a cage-like fused-ring structure which resembles a soccer ball, made
of twenty hexagons and twelve pentagons, with a carbon atom at each vertex of each
polygon and a bond along each polygon edge.
It was first generated in 1985 by Harold Kroto, James R. Heath, Sean
O'Brien, Robert Curl, and Richard Smalley at Rice University. Kroto, Curl and Smalley
were awarded the 1996 Nobel Prize in Chemistry for their roles in the discovery of
buckminsterfullerene and the related class of molecules, the fullerenes. The name is a
reference

to Buckminster

Fuller,

as

C60 resembles

his

trademark

geodesic.

Buckminsterfullerene is the most common naturally occurring fullerene molecule, as it

can be found in small quantities in soot. Solid and gaseous forms of the molecule have
been detected in deep space.
Buckminsterfullerene is one of the largest objects to have been shown to
exhibit waveparticle duality; as stated in the theory every object exhibits this behavior.
Its discovery led to the exploration of a new field of chemistry, involving the study
of fullerenes.

2.1.3 FULLERENE

A fullerene is a molecule of carbon in the form of a hollow sphere, ellipsoid, tube,

and many other shapes. Spherical fullerenes are also called buckyballs, and they resemble
the balls used in football (soccer). Cylindrical ones are called carbon nanotubes or
buckytubes. Fullerenes are similar in structure to graphite, which is composed of
stacked graphene sheets of linked hexagonal rings; but they may also contain pentagonal
(or sometimes heptagonal) rings.
3

The

first

fullerene

molecule

to

be

discovered,

and

the

family's

namesake, buckminsterfullerene (C60), was prepared in 1985 by Richard Smalley, Robert

Curl, James Heath, Sean O'Brien, and Harold Kroto at Rice University. The name was
homage to Buckminster Fuller, whose geodesic domes it resembles. The structure was
also identified some five years earlier by Sumio Iijima, from an electron microscope
image, where it formed the core of a "bucky onion." Fullerenes have since been found to
occur in nature. More recently, fullerenes have been detected in outer space. According to
astronomer Letizia Stanghellini, "Its possible that buckyballs from outer space provided
seeds for life on Earth."
The discovery of fullerenes greatly expanded the number of known carbon
allotropes, which until recently were limited to graphite, diamond, and amorphous carbon
such as soot and charcoal. Buckyballs and buckytubes have been the subject of intense
research, both for their unique chemistry and for their technological applications,
especially in materials science, electronics, andnanotechnology.

2.1.3.1 TYPES OF FULLERENE

Buckyball

Clusters:

smallest

member

is C20 (unsaturated

version

of dodecahedrane) and the most common is C60;

Nanotubes: hollow tubes of very small dimensions, having single or multiple

walls; potential applications in electronics industry;

Megatubes: larger in diameter than nanotubes and prepared with walls of

different thickness; potentially used for the transport of a variety of molecules of
different sizes;

Polymers: chain, two-dimensional and three-dimensional polymers are formed

under high-pressure high-temperature conditions; single-strand polymers are
formed using the Atom Transfer Radical Addition Polymerization (ATRAP) route;
4

Nano"Onions": spherical particles based on multiple carbon layers surrounding

a buckyball core; proposed for lubricants;

Linked "Ball-And-Chain" Dimers: two buckyballs linked by a carbon chain;

Fullerene rings.

2.1.4 BUCKYBALLS

2.1.4.1 BUCKMINSTER FULLERENE

Buckminsterfullerene is the smallest fullerene molecule containing pentagonal

and hexagonal rings in which no two pentagons share an edge (which can be
destabilizing, as in pentalene). It is also the most common in terms of natural occurrence,
as it can often be found in soot.
The structure of C60 is a truncated icosahedron, which resembles an association
football ball of the type made of twenty hexagons and twelve pentagons, with a carbon
atom at the vertices of each polygon and a bond along each polygon edge.
The van der Waals diameter of a C60 molecule is about 1.1 nanometers (nm). The
nucleus to nucleus diameter of a C60 molecule is about 0.71 nm.
The C60 molecule has two bond lengths. The 6:6 ring bonds (between two
hexagons) can be considered "double bonds" and are shorter than the 6:5 bonds (between
a hexagon and a pentagon). Its average bond length is 1.4 angstroms.
Silicon buckyballs have been created around metal ions.

2.1.4.2 BORON BUCKYBALL

A type of buckyball which uses boron atoms, instead of the usual carbon, was
predicted and described in 2007. The B 80 structure, with each atom forming 5 or 6 bonds,
is predicted to be more stable than the C 60 buckyball. One reason for this given by the
researchers is that the B-80 is actually more like the original geodesic dome structure
popularized by Buckminster Fuller, which uses triangles rather than hexagons. However,
this work has been subject to much criticism by quantum chemists as it was concluded
that the predicted Ih symmetric structure was vibrationally unstable and the resulting cage
undergoes a spontaneous symmetry break, yielding a puckered cage with rare
Th symmetry (symmetry of a volleyball). The number of six-member rings in this
molecule is 20 and number of five-member rings is 12. There is an additional atom in the
center of each six-member ring, bonded to each atom surrounding it. By employing a
systematic global search algorithm, later it was found that the previously proposed B80
fullerene is not global minimum for 80 atom boron clusters and hence cannot be found in
nature. In the same paper by Sandip De et al., it was concluded that born energy land
scape is significantly different from other fullerenes already found in nature hence pure
boron fullerenes are unlikely to exist in nature.

2.1.4.3 OTHER BUCKYBALLS

Another fairly common fullerene is C70, but fullerenes with 72, 76, 84 and even up
to 100 carbon atoms are commonly obtained.
In

mathematical

terms, the structure of a

fullerene

is a

trivalent

convex polyhedron with pentagonal and hexagonal faces. In graph theory, the

term fullerene refers to any 3-regular, planar graph with all faces of size 5 or 6 (including
the

external face). It follows

from Euler's

polyhedron

formula, V E + F = 2

(where V, E, F are the numbers of vertices, edges, and faces), that there are exactly 12
pentagons in a fullerene and V/2 10 hexagons.
The smallest fullerene is the dodecahedral C20. There are no fullerenes with 22
vertices. The number of fullerenes C2n grows with increasing n = 12, 13, 14, ..., roughly
in proportion to n9 (sequence A007894 in OEIS). For instance, there are 1812 nonisomorphic fullerenes C60. Note that only one form of C 60, the buckminsterfullerene alias
truncated, has no pair of adjacent pentagons (the smallest such fullerene). To further
illustrate the growth, there are 214,127,713 non-isomorphic fullerenes C200, 15,655,672 of
which have no adjacent pentagons. Optimized structures of many fullerene isomers are
published and listed on the web.
Trimetasphere carbon nanomaterials were discovered by researchers at Virginia
Tech and licensed exclusively to Luna Innovations. This class of novel molecules
comprises 80 carbon atoms (C80) forming a sphere which encloses a complex of three
metal atoms and one nitrogen atom. These fullerenes encapsulate metals which puts them
in the subset referred to as metallofullerenes. Trimetaspheres have the potential for use in
diagnostics (as safe imaging agents), therapeutics and in organic solar cells.

2.1.5 BUCKYPAPER
Buckypaper is a macroscopic aggregate of carbon nanotubes (CNT), or
"buckytubes".

It

owes

its

name

to

the

buck

minster

fullerene,

the

60

carbon fullerene (an allotrope of carbon with similar bonding that is sometimes referred
to as a "Buckyball" in honor of R. Buckminster Fuller).
Florida State Universitys High-Performance Materials Institute (HPMI,
Tallahassee, Fla., USA) reports that has developed a new high-performance composite

material that could be up to 10 times lighter and 250 times stronger than steel, twice as
hard as diamond and highly conductive to electricity and heat.
The High-Performance Materials Institutes research has focused on development
of buckypaper, and has reportedly already shown promise in a variety of real-world
applications. In aerospace applications, the buckypaper could replace the current metal
mesh used in the structure of the composite aircraft to disperse lightning strikes.
Replacing the metal with buckypaper would allow lightnings electrical charge to flow
around the plane and dissipate without causing damage. Buckypaper could also make
aerostructures stronger and lighter for increasing payloads and improving fuel efficiency.
Made of nanotubes, one of the most thermally conductive materials known,
buckypaper might lend itself to the development of heat sinks, enabling computers and
other electronic equipment to disperse heat more efficiently than what is currently
possible. And if exposed to an electric charge, buckypaper films could illuminate
computer and television screens. When compared to cathode ray tube and liquid crystal
display technology, these screens could be lighter, more energy efficient as well as feature
a more uniform level of brightness.
Furthermore, buckypaper is flame retardant and could help prevent fires on
aircraft, ships and other structures. Other applications include protective gear, such as
helmets and body armor for the military and police, as well as prosthetics for wounded
soldiers.
According to HPMI, to the naked eye buckypaper looks like ordinary carbon
paper, but under a microscope, one can see it is made from tube-shaped carbon molecules
50,000 times thinner than human hair. When sheets of buckypaper are stacked together to
become part of a composite structure, it can transform into one of the strongest materials
known to man.
Right now, HPMI is producing buckypaper at only a fraction of its potential
strength, in small quantities and at a high price. Nobel Laureate Dr. Richard Smalley first
produced buckypaper during the 1990s by filtering a nanotube suspension in order to
8

prepare samples for various tests. The High-Performance Materials Institute has spent the
past several years building upon this work, making buckypapers larger and more
multifunctional for composite fabrication and achieving several patents for its efforts.
According to Frank Allen, operations director at HPMI, when he joined the
institute in 2001, the facility was producing buckypaper at the size of a quarter, and now
it is making much larger sheets using a batch production process.
In an attempt to make buckypaper more commercially feasible, HPMI is looking
to scale up its production by working on a prototype that would produce buckypaper
strips at a rate of 5 ft/min.

2.2

SYNTHESIS

The generally accepted methods of making CNT films involves the use of
non-ionic surfactants, such as Triton X-100 and sodium lauryl sulfate, which improves
their dispersibility in aqueous solution. These suspensions can then be membrane filtered
under positive or negative pressure to yield uniform films. The Vander Waals force's
interaction between the nanotube surface and the surfactant can often be mechanically
strong and quite stable and therefore there are no assurances that all the surfactant is
removed from the CNT film after formation. Washing with methanol, an effective solvent
in the removal of Triton X, was found to cause cracking and deformation of the film. It
has also been found that Triton X can lead to cell lysis and in turn tissue inflammatory
responses even at low concentrations.
In order to avoid adverse side-effects from the possible presence of surfactants, an
alternative casting process can be used involving a frit compression method that did not
require the use of surfactants or surface modification. The dimensions can be controlled
through the size of the syringe housing and through the mass of carbon nanotubes added.
Their thicknesses are typically much larger than surfactant-cast buckypaper and have
9

been synthesized from 120 m up to 650 m; whilst no nomenclature system exists to

govern thicknesses for samples to be classified as paper, samples with thicknesses greater
than 500 m are referred to as buckydiscs. The frit compression method allows rapid
casting of buckypaper and buckydiscs with recovery of the casting solvent and control
over the 2D and 3D geometry.

Aligned multi-walled carbon nanotube (MWCNT) growth has been used in CNT
film synthesis through the domino effect. In this process, "forests" of MWCNTs are
pushed flat in a single direction, compressing their vertical orientation into the horizontal
plane, which results in the formation of high-purity buckypaper with no further
purification or treatment required. By comparison, when a buckypaper sample was
formed from the 1 ton compression of chemical vapor deposition (CVD) generated
MWCNT powder, any application of a solvent led to the immediate swelling of the film
till it reverted into particulate matter. It appears that for the CNT powder used,
compression alone was insufficient to generate robust buckypaper and highlights that the
aligned growth methodology generates in-situ tube-tube interactions not found in CVD
CNT powder and are preserved through to the domino pushing formation of buckypaper.

10

3. BUCKYPAPER SYNONYMS

3.1 GRAPHENE OXIDE PAPER

Graphene oxide paper or graphite oxide paper is a composite material fabricated

from graphite oxide. Micrometer thick films of graphene oxide paper are also named as
graphite oxide membranes (in 60-es) or (more recently) graphene oxide membranes. The
membranes are typically obtained by slow evaporation of graphene oxide solution or by
filtration method.
The material has exceptional stiffness and strength, due to the intrinsic strength of
the two-dimensional graphene backbone and to its interwoven layer structure which
distributes loads.
The starting material is water-dispersed graphene oxide flakes, which typically
contain a single graphene layer. These flakes may be chemically bonded, leading to the
development of additional new materials. Like the starting material, graphene oxide
paper is an electrical insulator; however, it may be possible to tune this property, making
the paper a conductor or semiconductor, without sacrificing its mechanical properties.
Detailed studies of graphite oxide membranes were performed by P.-H. Boehm
(German scientist who invented term "graphene") back in 1960. The paper titled
"Graphite Oxide and its membrane properties" reported synthesis of "paper-like foils"
11

with 0.05 mm thickness. The membranes were reported to be not permeable by gases
(nitrogen and oxygen) but easily permeable by water vapors and, suggestively, by any
other solvents which are able to intercalate graphite oxide. It was also reported that the
membranes are not permeable by "substances of lower molecular weight". permeation of
water through the membrane was attributed to swelling of graphite oxide structure which
enables water penetration path between individual graphene oxide layers. The interlayer
distance of dried Hummers graphite oxide was reported as 6.35 but in liquid water it
increased to 11.6. Remarkably, the paper also cited the inter-layer distance in diluted
NaOH as infinity thus reporting dispersion of graphite oxide on single-layered graphene
oxide sheets in solution. The study also reported permeation rate of membranes for water
0.1 mg per minute per square cm. The diffusion rate of water was evaluated as 1 cm/hour.
H.-P.Boehm's paper also shows that graphite oxide can be used as cation exchange
membrane and reports measurements of osmotic pressures, membrane potentials in KCl,
HCl, CaCl2, MgCl2, BaCl2 solutions. The membranes were also reported to be
permeable by large alkaloid ions as they are able to penetrate between graphene oxide
layers.
In 2012 some of the properties of graphite oxide membranes discovered by
H.P.Boehm were re-discovered for graphene oxide membranes (essentially the same
material with new name): the membranes were reported to be not permeable by helium
but permeable by water vapors. This study was later expanded to demonstrate that several
salts (for example KCl, MgCl2) diffuse through the graphene oxide membrane if it is
immersed in water solution.
Graphene oxide membranes were also actively studied in 60-s for application in
water desalination but it never come to practical applications. Retention rates over 90%
were reported in this study for NaCl solutions using stabilized graphene oxide
membranes in reverse osmosis setup.

3.2 SWCNT BUNDLES

12

Most single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWCNT) have a diameter of close to

1 nanometer, with a tube length that can be many millions of times longer. The structure
of a SWNT can be conceptualized by wrapping a one-atom-thick layer of graphite called
graphene into a seamless cylinder. The way the graphene sheet is wrapped is represented
by a pair of indices (n,m). The integers n and m denote the number of unit vectors along
two directions in the honeycomb crystal lattice of graphene. If m = 0, the nanotubes are
called zigzag nanotubes, and if n = m, the nanotubes are called armchair nanotubes.
Otherwise, they are called chiral.
An ideal SWCNT can be viewed as a graphene sheet rolled up into a seamless,
cylindrical tube with its ends capped with half of a fullerene molecule. Both the pulsed
vaporization method and the electrical arc technique to synthesize SWNT in high yield
produce SWNT bundles (or ropes) consisting of several hundred SWNT arranged in a
two-dimensional triangular lattice. The SWNT are predicted to be semiconducting or
metallic depending on the chirality of the tubes. Extensive experimental and theoretical
efforts are being pursued to understand their electronic, vibrational, and mechanical
properties. The phonon spectrum probed by Raman spectroscopy has been found useful
both as a characterizational tool and a testing ground for the theoretical predictions about
the electronic and vibrational properties of SWNT. Recently, we reported tube diameterdependent, resonant Raman scattering from zone-center phonons of SWNT bundles. The
number of peaks, their relative intensity, and the band shape observed in the Raman
spectra of SWNT bundles have been shown to depend sensitively on the energy of
excitation in the range 0.943.05 eV. Large resonant scattering cross sections were
observed and identified with allowed optical transitions between the valence and
conduction band spikes in the one-dimensional electronic density of states. The relatively
intense bands observed at low (150220 cm-1) and high (15001600 cm-1) frequencies
were identifiedwith the symmetric radial breathing (R) mode and tangential (T) C-C
stretching modes, respectively.

13

4. BUCKY-PAPER PROCESSING
Bucky-papers are typically formed by first purifying the CNTs and then
dispersing them in a suitable solvent. Once a well dispersed solution is achieved, it is
filtered through a porous support which captures the CNTs to form an optically opaque
Bucky-paper. If the Bucky-paper is thick enough it can be peeled off the support filter
intact. As shown by the origami plane in Figure 2c, Bucky-papers can be mechanically
robust and flexible. Typically longer, narrower and more pure nanotubes lead to stronger
Bucky-papers with higher tensile strengths. As grown CNTs are highly entangled and
typically contaminated with metallic catalyst particles and carbonaceous material such as
amorphous carbon, fullerenes, and graphitic nano-particles. Consequently their
purification and dispersion is a critical step in Bucky-paper processing and can affect
both the Bucky-paper structure and properties. Figure 3, for example, compares SEM
images of Bucky-papers processed from a poorly dispersed and well dispersed CNT
solution.
For purification an oxidative treatment such as nitric acid (HNO3) or annealing is
commonly used to remove amorphous carbon which is oxidised more quickly than the
CNTs. This is often followed by an acid treatment such as Hydrochloric acid (HCl) to
dissolve any metal particles. However these treatments can also damage and shorten the
CNTs as well as functionalise them with carboxyl and hydroxyl groups. This can be
advantageous for dispersion into polar solvents such as water. However it can also alter
the natural CNT properties. The chemical purification steps can also be combined with
physical processes such as filtration and centrifugation.

14

Fig. 1 Manufacturing process of Bucky paper

(a) Process for manufacturing Bucky-papers, (b) SEM image showing the Bucky-paper
surface and (c) Bucky-paper origami aeroplane demonstrating their flexibility mechanical
robustness.

For CNT dispersion a combination of the following strategies are typically used:

15

a) Covalent functionalization of the CNT surface to improve their chemical

compatibility with the dispersing medium.
b) The use of a third component such as a surfactant, polymer or biomolecules (such
as DNA).
c) Mechanical treatments such as ultrasonication and shear mixing.
Carbon an element which has the affinity to bond with itself is forming a rich
variety of structures and morphologies. Until recently only two types of - carbon
crystalline structures were known diamond and graphite. The first carbon fibers were
prepared by Thomas A. Edison to provide a filament for an early model of an electric
light bulb. Specially selected bamboo filaments were proposed to produce a coiled carbon
resistor, which could be heated comically.
Further research on filamentous carbon proceeded more slowly, since the carbon
spiral coil was soon replaced by tungsten filaments. The second stimulus to carbon fiber
research came in the 1950s from the space and aircraft industry, which was searching for
strong stiff light-weight fibers with superior mechanical properties. This stimulation led
to the synthesis of single crystal carbon whiskers, which have become a benchmark for
the discussion of mechanical and elastic properties of carbon fibers. Intense efforts were
invested in reducing fiber defects and crack propagation as well as in development of
highly oriented pyrolytic graphite, which preceded the synthesis of carbon fibers by a
catalytic chemical vapour deposition (CVD) process.

16

5. PROPERTIES

Buckypaper is one tenth the weight yet potentially 500 times stronger than steel
when its sheets are stacked to form a composite.
Composed of tube-shaped carbon molecules 50,000 times thinner than a human
hair.
Buckypaper possesses unique properties enabling it to conduct electricity like
copper or silicon. and disperse heat.
Sheets of Buckypaper stacked and pressed together form a composite.
It has a very high thermal conductivity
Electromagnetic shielding (EMI) (Cables, Computers, Radios, Planes, general
interference).
Super capacitors(Buckypaper has great electrical conductivity although it depends
heavily on the temperature of the environment).
semi-conductors (Due to buckypapers electrical characteristics, it may one day
replace or augment silicon)semi conductors are essential to todays modern
computer. The simplest semi-conductor is a simple diode that can either act as an
insulator or a conductor.

17

 BuckyPaper can be folded, cut with scissors, like notebook paper. We have
investigated its mechanical properties after infiltrating the paper with epoxy base
matrix phases.

6. APPLICATIONS

Electromagnetic interference shielding

Radiation shielding

Lightning strike protection

Heat sinks

Thermal management

Electrodes for fuel cells, supercapacitors and batteries

Ultra-high strength structures

Personal protection: body armor, helmets, armored vehicles

Bucky-papers have also been considered for a number of other

applications related to filtration and water purification

Fire protection: covering material with a thin layer of buckypaper

significantly improves its fire resistance due to the efficient reflection of heat by the
dense, compact layer of carbon nanotubes or carbon fibers.

If exposed to an electric charge, buckypaper could be used to illuminate

computer and television screens. It could be more energy-efficient, lighter, and could
18

allow for a more uniform level of brightness than current cathode ray tube (CRT)
and liquid crystal display (LCD) technology.
Films also could protect electronic circuits and devices within airplanes

from electromagnetic interference, which can damage equipment and alter settings.
Similarly, such films could allow military aircraft to shield their electromagnetic
"signatures", which can be detected via radar.

7. ADVANTAGES

Buckypaper make aero structures stronger and lighter for increasing

payloads and improving fuel efficiency.

50,000 times thinner than a human hair, and harder than diamond.

Buckypaper possesses unique properties enabling it to conduct electricity

and disperse heat more efficiently than what is currently possible.

Sheets of Buckypaper stacked and pressed together form a composite, and

it 10 times lighter but 500 times stronger than steel.

It has a very high thermal conductivity.

It acts as Super capacitors (great electrical conductivity).

Acts as Semi-conductors

BuckyPaper can be folded, cut with scissors, like notebook paper.

8. DISADVANTAGES

In may not be good for the environment.

19

The increased glow may increase global warming.

Expensive

Making it is very time consuming it take a few days to make a single role of a few
meters buckypaper.

9. FUTURE SCOPES
o

Using bucky paper as a therapeutic aid in medical applications

Replacing copper with buckypaper would save weight.

As electrodes for fuel cells, super capacitors and batteries

Buckypaper could be a more efficient and lighter replacement for graphite

sheets used in laptop computers to dissipate heat, which is harmful to electronics

Electromagnetic shielding (EMI) (Cables, Computers, Radios, Planes,

general interference).

Super capacitors (Buckypaper has great electrical conductivity although it

depends heavily on the temperature of the environment).

Build planes, automobiles and other things with buckypaper composites.

Use in armor plating and stealth technology.

'Bucky-paper' the new composite material for energy efficient transport.

20

10. CONCLUSION
In this seminar a brief study of the light weight material carbon fiber- buckypaper
has been given, with particular emphasis on the aircraft structures. Buckypaper is the
aerospace material of tomorrow. Carbon nanotube bucky paper is a ultra strong. It is
flame retardant and could help prevent fires on aircraft, ships and other structures. Instead
of the metal mesh currently used in the structure of the composite aircraft to disperse
lightning strikes, provide fuel efficiency and strength. Therefore, we can hope the future
aircrafts and spacecrafts are made by carbon nanotube bucky paper.
Carbon nanotubes (CNTs) possess great potential for developing highperformance and multifunctional nanocomposites for a wide variety of applications. As
the cost of producing CNT buckypaper, a thin film of CNT networks, continues to
decrease while the quality increases, more users and companies are becoming interested
in buckypaper for potential applications. Many of these applications, such as
electromagnetic interference (EMI) shielding and fire retardant surface skins for fiberreinforced composites or plastics, may not require buckypaper-based composites to be
much stronger compared to fiber-reinforced composites. This means that there is a market
for buckypaper even without its theoretical super strength, but desired functionality.

21

11. REFERENCE

1.

Cornett JB and Shockman GD. "Cellular lysis of Streptococcus faecalis induced

with Triton X-100" J Bacteriol 135 (1978).

2.

James B. Lewis, "Nanotechnology to soon provide paper stronger than steel for
commercial uses" , the Foresight Institute 2008-10-24. Retrieved 2012-12-7.

3.

Sun J and Gao L. "Development of a dispersion process for carbon nanotubes in

ceramic matrix by heterocoagulation". Carbon 41 (2003).

4.

Vohrer U, Kolaric I, Haque MH, Roth S and Detlaff-Weglikowska U. "Carbon

nanotube sheets for the use as artificial muscles" Carbon 42 (2004).

5.

Wang D, Song PC, Liu CH, Wu W, Fan SS, "Highly oriented carbon nanotube
papers made of aligned carbon nanotubes" Nanotechnology 19 (2008).

6.

Whitby RLD, Fukuda T, Maekawa T, James SL, Mikhalovsky SV, "Geometric

control and tuneable pore size distribution of buckypaper and buckydiscs" Carbon
46 (2008).

22

7.

Z. Zhao and J. Gou "Improved fire retardancy of thermoset composites modified

with carbon nanofibers" Sci. Technol. Adv. Mater. 10 (2009).

23