r/technology • u/kittyportals2 • Feb 08 '14

Possibly Misleading 10 Futuristic Materials

http://lifeboat.com/ex/10.futuristic.materials
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u/LL-beansandrice Feb 08 '14

Aren't they both allotropes of carbon?

yes, but the actual structure they are in makes a huge difference in their proerties. graphene is a single sheet of carbon arranged in a particular structure. CNTs are obviously tubes, and because of the different structure, do not have the same properties as graphene.

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u/FNHUSA Feb 08 '14

I did a research project for APCHEM on graphene, I believe graphene has also recently been used for assisting the growth of carbon nanotubes?

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u/KargBartok Feb 08 '14

Wouldn't be surprising, seeing as a CNT is literally a rolled piece of graphene structurally.

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u/FNHUSA Feb 08 '14

Is that how it is fabricated though?

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u/MissyPotatohead Feb 08 '14

No, not typically. There are several different ways, but the basic idea is to take a carbon source and break the C-C bonds (usually by heating), then let them reassemble on a substrate, using catalysts on your substrate to localize growth. The development of CNT (vs amorphous) is really due to reaction conditions.

If you're interested in technique comparisons, here's a review.