Adsorption of F127 onto single-walled carbon nanotubes characterised using small-angle neutron scattering

Aqueous single-walled carbon nanotube dispersions are often made using polymers from the Pluronic family of amphiphilic block copolymers, however relatively few studies have been made using small-angle neutron scattering techniques to discover the mechanism by which they act. SANS results reported here show that a relatively simple core-shell cylinder model can be used to fit data successfully at different contrasts. The results across all contrasts showed that the best fit gave an inner nanotube radius of 10 Å, corresponding to small nanotube bundles with a small amount of water present ∗To whom correspondence should be addressed †School of Chemistry, University of Bristol, Cantock’s Close, Bristol, BS8 1TS, UK ‡Merck Chemicals Ltd., Chilworth Technical Centre, University Parkway, Southampton SO16 7QD, UK ¶ISIS Neutron Source, STFC Rutherford Appleton Laboratory , Didcot, Oxfordshire, OX11 0QX, UK