A Novel Approach to Fabricate Carbon Nanomaterials–Nanoparticle Solids through Aqueous Solutions and Their Applications

A better understanding of the bonding and aggregation processes occurring between carbon nanomaterials and metal oxide particles in aqueous solutions is important in the development of novel nanosolids for applications in the areas of sensor development, highly conductive paint, nanotube alignment, polymer composites, Li-ion batteries, and many other areas. The current investigation reviews these processes and presents a detailed description of the aggregation processes occurring between carbon nanomaterials and metal oxide particles (metals) in various aqueous solutions. The results indicate that the charge attraction between the particles results in a strong homogeneous bonding that occurs within the aqueous solution and for the first time demonstrate and describe the aggregation process of these nanoparticles. The relative importance of many parameters that impact the aggregation process is identified and discussed, and guidelines for controlling the aggregation process are presented. This is a simple and cost-effective process to manufacture a novel nano-solid based on carbon nano-material and metal oxide. In addition, the process is easy to scale up and optimize. The methodology could lead to many significant applications as well as commercialization.