Effects of Various Surfactants on the Dispersion of MWCNTs-OH in Aqueous Solution

Dispersion of carbon nanotubes (CNTs) is a challenge for their application in the resulting matrixes. The present study conducted a comparison investigation of the effect of four surfactants: Alkylphenol polyoxyethylene ether (APEO), Silane modified polycarboxylate (Silane-PCE), I-Cationic polycarboxylate (I-C-PCE), and II-Cationic polycarboxylate (II-C-PCE) on the dispersion of hydroxyl functionalized multi-walled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs-OH). Among the four surfactants, APEO and II-C-PCE provide the best and the worst dispersion effect of CNTs in water, respectively. Dispersion effect of MWCNTs-OH has been characterized by optical microscope (OM), field emission-scanning electron microscope (FE-SEM), and Ultraviolet-visible spectroscopy (UV-Vis). The OM images are well consistent with the UV-Vis results. Based on the chemical molecular structures of the four surfactants, the mechanism of MWCNTs-OH dispersion in water was investigated. For each kind of surfactant, an optimum surfactant/MWCNTs-OH ratio has been determined. This ratio showed a significant influence on the dispersion of MWCNTs-OH. Surfactant concentration higher or lower than this value can weaken the dispersion quality of MWCNTs-OH.