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Agglomeration Dynamics of 1D Materials: Gas-Phase Collision Rates of Nanotubes and Nanorods.

Accepted version
Peer-reviewed

Type

Article

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Authors

Hoecker, Christian 
Bhalerao, Ajinkya 
Kateris, Nikolaos 
de La Verpilliere, Jean 

Abstract

The agglomeration and self-assembly of gas-phase 1D materials in anthropogenic and natural systems dictate their resulting nanoscale morphology, multiscale hierarchy, and ultimate macroscale properties. Brownian motion induces collisions, upon which 1D materials often restructure to form bundles and can lead to aerogels. Herein, the first results of collision rates for 1D nanomaterials undergoing thermal transport are presented. The Langevin dynamic simulations of nanotube rotation and translation demonstrate that the collision kernels for rigid nanotubes or nanorods are ≈10 times greater than spherical systems. Resulting reduced order equations allow straightforward calculation of the physical parameters to determine the collision kernel for straight and curved 1D materials from 102 to 106 nm length. The collision kernels of curved 1D structures increase ≈1.3 times for long (>102 nm), and ≈5 times for short (≈102 nm) relative to rigid materials. Applications of collision frequencies allow the first kinetic analysis of aerogel self-assembly from gas-phase carbon nanotubes (CNTs). The timescales for CNT collision and bundle formation (0.3-42 s) agree with empirical residence times in CNT reactors (3-15 s). These results provide insights into the CNT length, number, and timescales required for aerogel formation, which bolsters our understanding of mass-produced 1D aerogel materials.

Description

Keywords

Langevin dynamics, aerogels, carbon nanotubes, collision kernel, nanorods

Journal Title

Small

Conference Name

Journal ISSN

1613-6810
1613-6829

Volume Title

15

Publisher

Wiley

Rights

All rights reserved
Sponsorship
EPSRC (EP/M015211/1)
Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EP/M015211/1)
EPSRC: EP/M015211/1
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