Sedimentation of nanocarbon materials in organic solvents

The sedimentation kinetics of different nanocarbon materials in decane and toluene suspensions has been studied by a turbidimetric method. The nanomaterials morphology has been investigated by scanning electron microscopy, while the detailed structure information has been obtained from X-ray diffraction and Raman spectroscopy. The grain size as well as structure features of nanocarbon materials had a significant impact on the sedimentation kinetics. The half-sedimentation times for nanocarbon materials were three to four times higher comparing to graphite particles. The use of sedimentation as a first step in preliminary purification procedure of nanocarbon materials has been proposed.