Elucidating How Surface Functionalization of Multiwalled Carbon Nanotube Affects Nanostructured MWCNT/Titania Hybrid Materials

The new class of multiwalled carbon nanotube (MWCNT)/titania nanocomposites was prepared using a sol-gel technique. The addition of titania to MWCNTs has the potential to provide new capability for the development of electrical devices by taking advantage of the favorable electric characteristics of MWCNTs. MWCNTs were first functionalized with carboxyl, acyl chloride, amine, and hydroxyl groups and were then dispersed in a tetraisopropyl titanate (TIPT) solution via ultrasonic processing. After gelation, well-dispersed titania in the MWCNT/titania nanocomposites was obtained. Functionalized MWCNTs with varied functional groups were proved by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR). For the nanocomposites, the degree of the sol-gel process were proved by Raman spectroscopy and wide-angle X-ray diffraction (WAXD). Furthermore, the morphology of the MWCNT/titania nanocomposites was observed using transmission electron microscopy (TEM). In the sol-gel process, the functionalized MWCNTs with carboxyl, acyl chloride, amine, and hydroxyl groups have resulted in the carbon nanotube-graft-titania nanocomposites with a network structure of titania between the carbon nanotubes.