Work

Double‐Walled Carbon Nanotubes with Dynamic Strength of over 90 GPa Enhanced by Intershell Friction

Year: 2025

Type: article

Abstract: Low‐dimensional ultra‐strong nanomaterials have attracted great anticipation for applications under extreme dynamic conditions. A photocatalytic method is developed to selectively cut off the outer shell of double‐walled carbon nanotubes (DWCNTs), achieving non‐contact measurement of intershell friction with both high temporal and spatial resolutions at high sliding velocities under optical microscope. The intershell friction linearly increases with the sliding velocity, with a slope related to intershell distance and chirality of DWCNTs. The maximum measured friction reaches 194.1 ± 7.3 nN at a sliding velocity of 977 mm s−1, a value comparable to the tensile force (≈450 nN) for breaking the outer shell. Molecular dynamics simulations indicate that the velocity‐dependent intershell friction is related to dynamic localized commensurate contacts. The friction‐induced “intershell locking” enhances the effective dynamic strength of DWCNTs from 64.8 ± 3.4 GPa to 90.1 ± 4.0 GPa at a tensile strain rate of 3300 s−1. This study reveals anomalous friction mechanisms at nanoscale and demonstrates promising application of DWCNTs as ultra‐strong materials.

Source: Advanced Materials

DOI: 10.1002/adma.202414643

Authors: Hongjie Yue, Hanzheng Xing, Lingxiang Qin, Yunxiang Bai, Xiaoyan Li, Fei Wei

Institutions: Tsinghua University, Commercial Aircraft Corporation of China (China), National Center for Nanoscience and Technology

Language: English

Topic: Carbon Nanotubes in Composites

Subfield: Materials Chemistry

Field: Materials Science

Domain: Physical Sciences

Open Access status: bronze

Funders: National Natural Science Foundation of China, National Key Research and Development Program of China

Awards: G196882024, G6247017162, G6516133086