Fractionation of single wall carbon nanotubes by length using cross flow filtration method.

A novel system for fractionating single wall carbon nanotubes (SWCNTs) by length via a three-step cross-flow filtration has been developed in which three membrane filters of different pore sizes, 1.0, 0.45, and 0.2 microm, were used. SWCNTs dispersed in water with the help of sodium carboxymethylcellulose (CMC) detergents were successfully sorted into four samples, and the atomic force microscopy (AFM) observation of those samples confirmed that their length distribution peaks are within the expected ranges from pore sizes of used filters. However, the result of the similar filtration process using a different detergent, sodium dodecylbenzenesulfonate (SDBS), showed no pronounced correlation between the length distribution of SWCNTs and the pore size. The observed difference in the sorting phenomena caused by the detergent type suggests that the permeation property depends on the complex structure resulting from the dispersed SWCNTs and detergent molecules.