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Title: Nanofluidic transport through isolated carbon nanotube channels: Advances, controversies, and challenges

Journal Article · · Advanced Materials
 [1];  [1];  [2];  [2];  [1]
  1. Lawrence Livermore National Lab. (LLNL), Livermore, CA (United States)
  2. Lawrence Berkeley National Lab. (LBNL), Berkeley, CA (United States)

Owing to their simple chemistry and structure, controllable geometry, and a plethora of unusual yet exciting transport properties, carbon nanotubes (CNTs) have emerged as exceptional channels for fundamental nanofluidic studies, as well as building blocks for future fluidic devices that can outperform current technology in many applications. Leveraging the unique fluidic properties of CNTs in advanced systems requires a full understanding of their physical origin. Recent advancements in nanofabrication technology enable nanofluidic devices to be built with a single, nanometer-wide CNT as a fluidic pathway. These novel platforms with isolated CNT nanochannels offer distinct advantages for establishing quantitative structure–transport correlations in comparison with membranes containing many CNT pores. In addition, they are promising components for single-molecule sensors as well as for building nanotube-based circuits wherein fluidics and electronics can be coupled. With such advanced device architecture, molecular and ionic transport can be manipulated with vastly enhanced control for applications in sensing, separation, detection, and therapeutic delivery. Recent achievements in fabricating isolated-CNT nanofluidic platforms are highlighted, along with the most-significant findings each platform enables for water, ion, and molecular transport. Furthermore, the implications of these findings and remaining open questions on the exceptional fluidic properties of CNTs are also discussed.

Research Organization:
Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL), Livermore, CA (United States)
Sponsoring Organization:
USDOE
Grant/Contract Number:
AC52-07NA27344
OSTI ID:
1251032
Report Number(s):
LLNL-JRNL-666424
Journal Information:
Advanced Materials, Vol. 27, Issue 38; ISSN 0935-9648
Publisher:
WileyCopyright Statement
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English
Citation Metrics:
Cited by: 68 works
Citation information provided by
Web of Science

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Cited By (18)

High‐Yield Fabrication, Activation, and Characterization of Carbon Nanotube Ion Channels by Repeated Voltage‐Ramping of Membrane‐Capillary Assembly journal April 2019
Nanofluidics: A New Arena for Materials Science journal November 2017
Wettability and Applications of Nanochannels journal October 2018
Dynamic Curvature Nanochannel‐Based Membrane with Anomalous Ionic Transport Behaviors and Reversible Rectification Switch journal January 2019
Solvation‐Involved Nanoionics: New Opportunities from 2D Nanomaterial Laminar Membranes journal December 2019
Supramolecular Chiral 2D Materials and Emerging Functions journal February 2020
Structure and Transport Properties of Water and Hydrated Ions in Nano‐Confined Channels journal April 2019
Carbon nanotubes in microfluidic lab-on-a-chip technology: current trends and future perspectives journal September 2017
Massive radius-dependent flow slippage in carbon nanotubes journal September 2016
Dripplons as localized and superfast ripples of water confined between graphene sheets journal April 2018
Structural resolution of inorganic nanotubes with complex stoichiometry journal May 2018
Breakdown of the Stokes–Einstein water transport through narrow hydrophobic nanotubes journal January 2017
How strongly do hydrogen and water molecules stick to carbon nanomaterials? journal March 2017
Flow of water through carbon nanotubes predicted by different atomistic water models journal May 2019
Modeling Water Flow Through Carbon Nanotube Membranes with Entrance/Exit Effects journal January 2017
Theoretical studies and molecular dynamics simulations on ion transport properties in nanochannels and nanopores journal February 2018
Ion transport in complex layered graphene-based membranes with tuneable interlayer spacing journal February 2016
Imogolite Nanotubes: A Flexible Nanoplatform with Multipurpose Applications journal October 2018

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