Diameter-dependent solubility of single-walled carbon nanotubes

We study the solubility and dispersibility of as-produced and purified HiPco single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWNTs). Variation in specific operating conditions of the HiPco process are found to lead to significant differences in the respective SWNT solubilities in oleum and surfactant suspensions. The diameter distributions of SWNTs dispersed in surfactant solutions are batch-dependent, as evidenced by luminescence and Raman spectroscopies, but are identical for metallic and semiconducting SWNTs within a batch. We thus find that small diameter SWNTs disperse at higher concentration in aqueous surfactants and dissolve at higher concentration in oleum than do large-diameter SWNTs. These results highlight the importance of controlling SWNT synthesis methods in order to optimize processes dependent on solubility, including macroscopic processing such as fiber spinning, material reinforcement, and films production, as well as for fundamental research in type selective chemistry, optoelectronics, and nanophotonics.