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Updated: Jun 10, 2026

Dry Oxidation and Vacuum Annealing Treatments for Tuning the Wetting Properties of Carbon Nanotube Arrays
Published on: April 15, 2013
Oxidation reactions mediated by single-walled carbon nanotubes in aqueous solution
1Environmental Toxicology Graduate Program, University of California, Riverside, California 92521, USA.
Abstract:
How single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWCNT) function in redox reactions may be related to their behaviors in the induction of oxidative stress. Herein, oxidation of several biologically relevant reducing agents in the presence of SWCNT was studied in aqueous solutions. The selected reductants included a common indicator for intracellular reactive oxygen species (ROS) (2,7-dichlorodihydrofluorescein), small antioxidants (vitamin C, Trolox, and cysteine), and a high-molecular-weight ROS scavenger (bovine serum albumin). The unmodified or carboxylated SWCNT acted as both the oxidants and the catalysts in reactions. Moreover, they accelerated the oxidation reactions mediated by horseradish peroxidase, a representative member of the enzyme family actively involved in balancing oxidative stress. These diverse roles in redox reactions may serve the chemistry basis for SWCNT to induce oxidative stress in biological systems as potential environmental pollutants.
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