Carbon nanotube-poly(vinyl alcohol) hybrid aerogels: Improvements in the surface area and structural stability by internal morphology control

In this study, carbon nanotube (CNT) hybrid aerogels with high mechanical properties were fabricated by interconnecting structural networks of CNTs using poly(vinyl alcohol) (PVA) through amine-functionalized iron oxide (NH2-Fe). Consequently, Fe-CNT-PVA hybrid aerogels exhibited good structural stabilities, even under repeated loads due to the interconnection bonding with PVA between neighboring CNTs. Furthermore, compared to the Fe-CNT aerogels, the Fe-CNT-PVA hybrid aerogels showed ∼3 times higher specific surfaces due to the tuning of the internal morphology by controlling electromagnetic interactions between NH2-Fe on the surface of the CNTs and the applied magnetic field. These results clearly show that CNT aerogels with both improved structural stabilities and specific surface areas can be fabricated by the method proposed in this study.