Stanislaus S. Wong on Chemically Modifying Carbon Nanotubes
Emerging Research Front Commentary, October 2010
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Article: Covalent surface chemistry of single-walled carbon nanotubes
Authors: Banerjee, S;Hemraj-Benny, T;Wong,
SS |
Stanislaus S. Wong talks with ScienceWatch.com and answers a few questions about this month's Emerging Research Front paper in the field of Material Science.
Why do you think your paper is highly
cited?
It was highly cited because it deals with a number of reliable and rational protocols for chemically modifying carbon nanotubes. There are not that many reviews which address the chemistry of nanostructures by analogy with other bulk chemical structures.
In fact, the theme of the review was to treat nanotubes as chemical reagents (be it inorganic or organic) in their own right. From their inherent structure, one can view nanotubes as sterically bulky, p-conjugated ligands, or conversely, as electron-deficient alkenes.
"...the idea of chemical manipulation of other types and classes of nanostructures, such as nanowires and graphene, remains an intriguing area of interest and continued work."
Our review focused on work in our laboratory as well as in that of many others in which there was a strong desire to understand chemical reactivity involving carbon nanotubes from both a structural and mechanistic perspective, which should hopefully expand the breadth and types of reactions these nanotubes can undergo in the solution phase. The salient points of all of this work can be summarized as follows:
(a) Predictive chemical coordination to nanotubes is possible using conventional molecular organic and inorganic methodologies.
(b) There are differences in reactivity between alkenes, fullerenes, and nanotubes.
(c) The resulting functionalized nanotube adducts possess unique physical (such as optical), catalytic, and electronic properties.
Does it describe a new discovery, methodology, or
synthesis of knowledge?
It was more of a compilation of existing knowledge of the chemistry of carbon nanotubes at that time, e.g. the reactions nanotubes were known to undergo.
Would you summarize the significance of your paper
in layman’s terms?
Controllable chemical modification of carbon nanotubes has the potential to tailor the unique electronic and mechanical properties of these nanostructures in a deterministic manner for a number of potential applications spanning physics, biology, medicine, chemistry, and engineering.
How did you become involved in this research, and
how would you describe the particular challenges, setbacks, and
successes that you've encountered along the way?
I had been involved with functionalizing carbon nanotube tips as a graduate student, so generalizing these types of reactions to carbon nanotubes as a whole, including their sidewalls, was a natural extension of my previous work.
Where do you see your research leading in the
future?
I see a concerted effort towards developing chemical reactions of carbon nanostructures for practical applications and devices, especially in energy applications, such as batteries and solar cells. Moreover, the idea of chemical manipulation of other types and classes of nanostructures, such as nanowires and graphene, remains an intriguing area of interest and continued work.
Do you foresee any social or political
implications for your research?
No, not in the short term. However, the basic research discussed in this
review will likely be significant from the point of view of eventually
developing real, practical applications.
Stanislaus S. Wong, Professor
Department of Chemistry
SUNY Stony Brook
Stony Brook, NY, USA
Joint appointment with Brookhaven National Laboratory
Upton, NY, USA
KEYWORDS: SIDEWALL FUNCTIONALIZATION; STRUCTURAL-CHARACTERIZATION; CHROMATOGRAPHIC PURIFICATION; CHEMICAL FUNCTIONALIZATION; 1,3-DIPOLAR CYCLOADDITIONS; WATER-SOLUBILIZATION; ELECTRONIC-STRUCTURE; RAMAN-SPECTROSCOPY; CDSE NANOCRYSTALS; QUANTUM DOTS.