スウォンジー大学の研究者たちは、廃棄されるフェイスマスクに含まれる炭素を変換して高品質の単層カーボンナノチューブ（CNT）を作るプロセスを開発し、これを用いてブロードバンド品質のイーサネットケーブルを作りました。 Swansea University academics have pioneered a process which converts the carbon found in discarded facemasks to create high-quality single-walled carbon nanotubes (CNT) which were then used to make Ethernet cable with broadband quality.
2022-10-17 スウォンジー大学
この研究で、フェイスマスクの中の炭素は、CNTのような高品質の材料を作るためのかなり良い原料として使えることがわかった。
研究を通じて、本質的に価値のない廃棄フェイスマスクからCNTを加工することで、非常に価値の高い材料を作ることができることを実証した。
＜関連情報＞
- https://www.swansea.ac.uk/press-office/news-events/news/2022/10/green-chemistry-transforms-facemasks-into-ethernet-cables.php
- https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s42823-022-00398-8#citeas
フェイスマスクのアップサイクルによる多層および単層カーボンナノチューブの用途拡大 Upcycling of face masks to application-rich multi- and single-walled carbon nanotubes
Varun Shenoy Gangoli,Thomas Mahy,Tim Yick,Yubiao Niu,Richard E. Palmer & Alvin Orbaek White
Carbon Letters Published:30 September 2022
DOI:https://doi.org/10.1007/s42823-022-00398-8
Abstract
We report the use of face mask materials as a carbon precursor for the synthesis of multi- and single-walled carbon nanotubes (CNTs) in an open-loop chemical recycling process. Novel surgical mask precursors were suspended in toluene and injected into a chemical vapor deposition reactor previously optimized for CNT production using liquid injection. The CNTs were collected and characterized using resonant Raman spectroscopy, transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) before being turned into fibrils that were tested for electrical conductance. Once confirmed and repeated for statistical accuracy, a CNT-based Ethernet cable was manufactured and tested using iPerf3 for uplink and downlink speeds exceeding broadband standards worldwide. Radial breathing modes from Raman spectroscopy indicate single walled CNTs (SWCNTs) with diameters ranging from 0.8 to 1.55 nm and this matches well with TEM observations of SWCNTs with 1.5 nm diameter. This work pushes the horizon of feedstocks useful for CNT and SWCNT production in particular; this work demonstrates upcycling of materials fated for disposal into materials with positive net value and plenty of real-world applications.
