Fish & Richardson P.C.
Method for purification of as-produced fullerene nanotubes
This invention relates generally to a fullerene nanotube purification process and more particularly to a purification process that comprises heating the fullerene nanotube-containing felt under oxidizing conditions to remove the amorphous carbon deposits and other contaminating materials. In a preferred mode of this purification procedure, the felt is heated in an aqueous solution of an inorganic oxidant, such as nitric acid, a mixture of hydrogen peroxide and sulfuric acid, or a potassium permanganate. Preferably, fullerene nanotube-containing felts are refluxed in an aqueous solution of an oxidizing acid at a concentration high enough to etch away amorphous carbon deposits within a practical time frame, but not so high that the fullerene nanotube material will be etched to a significant degree. When material having a high proportion of fullerene nanotubes is purified, the preparation produced will be enriched in fullerene nanotubes, so that the fullerene nanotubes are substantially free of other material.
William Marsh Rice University
H H Y G G Y G G G Y Y D Y Y B H G B B Y Y H C Y B B B Y H Y Y Y Y Y B G B B Y D H C B C B Y Y Y B Y G B H B Y D B H H G G H Y C
H01M H01L Y10S G11C G11C Y10T G11C G11B G11C Y02P Y10S D01F Y10T Y02E B01J H01M G11B B01J B01J Y10S Y10T H01L C01B Y10T B01J B01J B01J Y10S H01M Y10S Y10S Y10S Y02E Y10S B01J G11C B01J B01J Y10S D01F H01G C01B B01J C01B B01J Y10S Y10S Y10S B01J Y10S G11B B82B H01M B01J Y10S D21H B01J H01M H01L G11B G11C H01M Y10S C01B
inventional inventional additional inventional additional additional inventional additional additional additional additional inventional additional additional inventional inventional additional inventional additional additional additional inventional inventional additional inventional inventional inventional additional additional additional additional additional additional additional inventional inventional inventional inventional additional inventional inventional inventional inventional additional additional additional additional additional inventional additional additional inventional inventional inventional additional inventional inventional inventional inventional additional additional inventional additional inventional
Ting Andrew G. Pavel Jason H. Hongjie Richard E. Andreas Ken Jie Daniel T.
Guo Rinzler Nikolaev Hafner Dai Smalley Thess Smith Liu Colbert