carbon nanotube science. synthesis, properties and applications. by peter j. f. harris

Carbon NanotubeScience

The subject of carbon nano-tube (CNT) science has already

been addressed recently in a varietyof books and review articles, as there is

still a tremendous amount of researchinterest almost 20 years after the discovery

of CNTs, and many questions remain un-answered. The contents of this book cover researchactivities on both multiwalled carbon nanotubes(MWCNTs) and single-walled carbon nanotubes(SWCNTs), and are concerned with production andgrowth, purification and processing, and structureand physical properties. Exohedral and endohedralfunctionalization, the formation of composites, andapplications of CNTs are also considered. The mainemphasis is clearly on CNT production, growth,and structural characterization by transmissionelectron microscopy (TEM).

The book is well structured, and provides goodsummaries at the end of each chapter, as well as atthe end of the book. Although the chapters containextensive lists of references, an in-depth discussionof the different topics is avoided. Thus, at firstglance it appears to be highly suitable for youngresearchers and newcomers to CNT research.However, for that purpose it is a little toospecialized in the area of production. The book isalso nicely illustrated by TEM images, but TEM iscertainly not the only standard technique used forthe characterization of CNTs, and therefore theemphasis on TEM throughout the book overstatesits importance.

The book begins with an extensive and highlyvaluable description of the various productiontechniques for both SWCNTs and MWCNTs,including recent developments. The partly contra-dictory theories about growth mechanisms aredescribed in detail and are carefully evaluatedagainst each other. The advantages and disadvan-tages of the various production techniques are alsowell summarized, thereby providing an excellentplatform for further reading.

That is followed by a description of thepurification and processing of SWCNTs andMWCNTs. The author focuses on previous ground-breaking developments rather than on recentadvances. The section on processing includes thealignment of CNTs, as well as the formation ofcontrolled architectures during production andpost-synthesis treatment. However, although thechapter mentions post-synthesis separationapproaches, these are only outlined very briefly,even though there is currently huge interest in thissubject in the CNTresearch community, as selectiveCNT growth has not been achieved up to now. Theauthor also omits some clearly important aspects of

CNT separation, such as the method of density-gradient ultracentrifugation introduced in 2006 byHersam and co-workers[1] for the fractionation ofSWCNTs according to diameter and electronicproperties. As the book aims to provide a short butcomprehensive summary of CNT science in gen-eral, it would have been desirable to also coverrecent advances in post-synthesis separation.

The author then begins a description of CNTstructures, also discussing the structure of MWCNTand SWCNT ends. Experimental structural evalua-tion is then discussed with the aid of numerousTEM images. Although this is certainly interesting,the experimental description is perhaps toodetailed for the general readership that is envis-aged.

In the following sections, the physical andelectronic properties of CNTs are summarized. Adetailed theoretical account of the electronicproperties is not given, but the interested readeris referred to suitable publications. The mechanicalproperties of both SWCNTs and MWCNTs intheory and experiment are then outlined. However,the optical and spectroscopic properties of CNTs,which are of extreme importance for their charac-terization, are barely touched on, again presentinga rather distorted view of CNT characterization.

Next, the author provides a short overview ofexohedral functionalization, including the immobi-lization of biomolecules. No recent advances aredescribed, either in the vast field of covalent CNTchemistry or in the developing topic of non-covalent CNT chemistry. As stated by the author,functionalization was outside the scope of the book,and therefore only the early groundbreaking stud-ies are highlighted.

In the section concerned with the formation andcharacterization of CNT composites, the focus is onpolymers as a matrix, but the incorporation ofnanotubes into ceramics, carbon, and metals is alsobriefly discussed.

Endohedral CNT functionalization, includingfilling the nanotube cavities of SWNTs andMWCNTs with water, fullerenes, gases, or inor-ganic material is covered in the next chapter. Theformation of heterogeneous boron and nitrogenCNTs is also summarized. In contrast to thetreatment of exohedral functionalization, thedescriptions in this chapter are more detailed,even though the applicability of this kind of CNTderivatization is certainly far less apparent thanthat of covalent and noncovalent exohedral func-tionalization.

In the last section, the applications of nano-tubes as probes and sensors are outlined, with afocus on the production of atomic force microscopytips with nanotubes anchored to the cantilever.Other applications are not explicitly addressed in aseparate chapter as suggested by the subtitle, but

Carbon Nanotube ScienceSynthesis, Properties andApplications. By Peter J. F.Harris. Cambridge Univer-sity Press 2009. 314 pp.,hardcover £ 45.00.—ISBN978-0521828956

Books

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rather appear within the chapters concerned withnanotube properties. Thus, the subtitle Synthesis,Properties and Applications might be slightly mis-leading.

In general, the book had the opportunity tostand out above other publications in this field, as itaims to give a brief overview of the many facets ofCNT research, also including areas that are usuallyonly marginally considered in general reviews—forexample, heterogeneous nanotubes, nanotube com-posites with ceramics or metals as matrix material,or a detailed description of MWCNTs. However, itseldom goes beyond the level of reviews thatalready exist in large numbers in the literature,except for the topics of nanotube production andcharacterization by TEM. This gives a rather

subjective view of nanotube research. With somereservations, the book can be recommended fornewcomers, as well as for readers especially inter-ested in the production and growth of CNTs.

Andreas Hirsch, Claudia BackesDepartment of Organic Chemisty andInterdisciplinary Center for Molecular Materials(ICMM)Friedrich Alexander University Erlangen–N�rnberg(Germany)

DOI: 10.1002/anie.201000314

[1] M. S. Arnold, A. A. Green, J. F. Hulvat, S. I. Stupp,M. C. Hersam, Nat. Nanotechnol. 2006, 1, 60.

AngewandteChemie

1723Angew. Chem. Int. Ed. 2010, 49, 1721 – 1723 � 2010 Wiley-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim www.angewandte.org