07.02.2013 Views

Carbon Nanotube Reinforced Composites: Metal and Ceramic ...

Carbon Nanotube Reinforced Composites: Metal and Ceramic ...

Carbon Nanotube Reinforced Composites: Metal and Ceramic ...

SHOW MORE
SHOW LESS

You also want an ePaper? Increase the reach of your titles

YUMPU automatically turns print PDFs into web optimized ePapers that Google loves.

8<br />

Conclusions<br />

8.1<br />

Future Prospects<br />

Research <strong>and</strong> development efforts throughout the academic <strong>and</strong> industrial sectors<br />

haveresultedininnovative technologies forthefabricationofcarbonnanotubes(CNTs)<br />

with reduced weight, <strong>and</strong> excellent electrical, mechanical <strong>and</strong> thermal characteristics.<br />

Consequently, CNTs offer tremendous opportunities for the development of advanced<br />

functional materials. Numerous researchers have reported remarkable improvement<br />

in the mechanical properties of metals <strong>and</strong> ceramics by adding low loading levels<br />

of CNTs. <strong>Carbon</strong> nanotubes can strengthen metals <strong>and</strong> ceramics through the loadtransfer<br />

effect, <strong>and</strong> toughen brittle ceramics via a crack-bridging mechanism.<br />

<strong>Composites</strong> reinforced with CNTs also exhibit excellent electrical <strong>and</strong> thermal conductivities.<br />

These composites show potential applications for thermal management in<br />

electronic devices, particularly in the telecommunications sector. However, heat<br />

dissipation is a key issue that limits the performance <strong>and</strong> reliability of electronic<br />

devicesfromcellular phonestosatellites. Suchcommercial productsrequireminiature<br />

composite materials with multifunctional properties. Furthermore, CNTs show<br />

remarkable biocompatibility <strong>and</strong> bioactivity, rendering them attractive materials for<br />

clinical applications. Generally, fundamental underst<strong>and</strong>ing of the synthetic process<br />

for achieving homogeneous dispersion of nanotubes <strong>and</strong> the structure–property<br />

relationship of nanocomposites is still lacking. From a more fundamental perspective,<br />

the principles of reinforcement, deformation, mechanical failure, electrical<br />

<strong>and</strong> heat transport of these nanocomposites are not completely understood<br />

<strong>and</strong> tested. Proper underst<strong>and</strong>ing of the processing– structure–property relationship<br />

is critical for designing novel nanocomposites with functional properties for<br />

specific applications. Up till now, only a few inventions have been acknowledged by<br />

global patent authorities for the possible commercialization of CNT-reinforced<br />

composites (Table 8.1) [Chap. 2, Ref. 99, Chap. 7, Ref. 3, 1–4].Thisisduetothelow<br />

production yield <strong>and</strong> high cost of CNTs. Obviously there is much to be done in<br />

enhancing the production yield of high quality nanotubes through technological<br />

innovations. Further commercial development of CNT-reinforced composites<br />

depends greatly on the availability of nanotubes at reasonable prices. For successful<br />

j215

Hooray! Your file is uploaded and ready to be published.

Saved successfully!

Ooh no, something went wrong!