Capillary electrophoresis is used to distinguish carboxylation on multiwall carbon nanotubes. This research is significant to toxicity studies of carbon nanotubes as it provides a new technique to characterize carbon nanotubes surface modifications.  Increased production of multiwalled carbon nanotubes for consumer products, raises awareness for the need to demonstrate occupational safety.  Some reports in the literature indicate that carboxylation of carbon nanotubes via acid purification decreases toxicity when compared to non-carboxylated carbon nanotubes.  The amount of carboxylation has also been linked to decreases in toxicity, with increased carboxylation having lowered toxic effects.  Therefore, the goal of this research project is to develop a method that allows for rapid screening of degree of carboxylation on carbon nanotubes.  The innovative approach utilizes in-capillary affinity to quantify a carbon nanotube interactions, where changes in the apparent interaction are directly correlated to the degree of carboxylation.  This method has demonstrated the ability to differentiate carbon nanotubes across manufacturers, acid purification time and acid purification methods.  Capillary electrophoresis with affinity binding provides a simple alternative to current technologies for assessing carboxylation on carbon nanotubes. <br/>

Rapid characterization of carbon nanotubes with capillary electrophoresis

254th National Meeting (2017)

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