Lockheed Martin Corporation

Aaron G Sell

Jonathan Wesley Ward

Polymer composites containing carbon nanotubes often exhibit high glass transition temperatures, which can complicate their use in additive manufacturing processes. Extruded filaments containing carbon nanotubes and residual solvent can have desirably lowered glass transition temperatures. Extruded filaments can contain a polymer as a continuous phase, a nanomaterial such as carbon nanotubes homogeneously mixed throughout the continuous phase, and above 0% to about 15% solvent by weight. Methods for making extruded filaments can include producing a solvated composite by dissolving a polymer and a nanomaterial in a solvent, producing a partially desolvated composite by reducing a solvent content of the solvated composite to a range of about 10% to about 30% by weight, forming particles of the partially desolvated composite, supplying the particles to an extruder, and extruding a filament having the polymer as a continuous phase and the nanomaterial homogeneously mixed throughout the continuous phase, which also contains residual solvent.

Polymer composites containing carbon nanotubes and methods related thereto

Carbon nanomaterials can undergo selective functionalization or defunctionalization in the presence of near-infrared electromagnetic radiation. In particular, semiconducting carbon nanotubes can be selectively functionalized or defunctionalized over metallic carbon nanotubes, which can allow their purification and/or separation to take place. Functionalizing methods can include exposing a carbon nanomaterial to electromagnetic radiation having a wavelength of about 700 nm or greater, and reacting at least a portion of the carbon nanomaterial with a reactive medium in the presence of the electromagnetic radiation to form a functionalized carbon nanomaterial. In the absence of the electromagnetic radiation, the carbon nanomaterial is unreactive with the reactive medium. Defunctionalizing methods can take place similarly in the absence of the reactive medium. Photochemical reactors incorporating a recirculation loop and a near-infrared electromagnetic radiation source can be used in functionalization and defunctionalization methods. In-line sonication can also be provided in the photochemical reactors.

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Salem, NH, United States of America

Aaron G Sell