Coating Individual Single-Walled Carbon Nanotubes with Nylon 6,10 through Emulsion Polymerization

Solvent microenvironments are formed around individual single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWNTs) by mixing SWNT suspensions with water-immiscible organic solvents. These microenvironments are used to encapsulate the SWNTs with the monomer sebacoyl chloride. Hexamethylene diamine is then injected into the aqueous phase so the formation of nylon 6,10 is restricted to the interface between the microenvironment and water. This emulsion polymerization process results in uniform coatings of nylon 6,10 around individual SWNTs. The nylon-coated SWNTs remain dispersed in the aqueous phase and are highly luminescent at pH values ranging from 3 to 12. This emulsion polymerization method provides a general approach to coat nanotubes with various polymers.