Experimental demonstration of meso-scale carbon nanotube self-assembled tube structures

In addition to numerous other properties of interest, carbon nanotubes (CNT) promise to form a basis for new materials of extraordinary strength owing mainly to the very high carbon-carbon bond energies and their unique tubular structure at the molecular scale. In the area of materials development, the guiding concept of bio-inspired hierarchical structures combined with controlled fabrication at multiple scales has the potential to result in substantially improved mechanical performance. Here we show examples of a multiple-scale self-assembled tube structure, which are themselves composed of multi-wall CNTs, while also demonstrating some important aspects of their nucleation and growth. These hierarchical and self-assembled objects strongly indicate the feasibility of controlled synthesis of macroscopic CNT structures and CNT-reinforced materials for use in various engineering applications. These applications could encompass the areas of structures, thermal transfer, electronics, fluid dynamics, and micro-fluidics.