Stabilizing carbon nanotube yarns using chemical vapor infiltration

Abstract Carbon nanotube (CNT) yarns exhibit high strength, low density, and relatively good conductivity and piezoresistivity, which makes them an ideal candidate for many advanced applications such as reinforcements for multifunctional composites. However, CNT yarns usually lack the required property stability under load. In this paper a method for stabilizing CNT yarn using chemical vapor infiltration (CVI) to infiltrate and deposit pyrocarbon into CNT yarns is reported. The deposited pyrocarbon effectively binds neighboring CNTs to inhibit inter-nanotube sliding under load, which consequently stabilize the CNT yarns. Relaxation tests showed that compared to pristine CNT yarns, the stabilized yarns have higher electrical stability as well as load retention (∼93% versus ∼61%). There was also a concomitant increase in density along with improved electrical conductivity, mechanical strength and stiffness. Furthermore, under sonication the CVI treated yarns resisted disintegration, making them suitable for electrochemical applications.