Assembly of fullerenol particles on carbon nanotubes through poly (acryloyl chloride)

Multiwalled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs)/fullerenol composites were prepared through a facile method. Poly (acryloyl chloride) (PACT) was first grafted onto oxidized MWCNTs through the reaction between the acyl chloride groups of PACT with the hydroxyl groups on the surface of MWCNTs. The PACT with multiple acyl chloride groups provided more active points for further reactions. Subsequently, the remaining aryl chloride groups of PACI were allowed to react with the hydroxyl groups of fullerenols leading to the covalent attachment of the latter onto the grafted PACT chain. The MWCNTs/fullerenol composites thus obtained were characterized using Fourier transform infrared spectrometer (FTIR), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), and thermal gravimetric analysis (TGA). (C) 2008 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.