Chiral Selective Dispersion of Arc-Discharged Single-Walled Carbon Nanotubes by Aromatic Polyimides with Pendent Triphenylamine Units

Because of their unique physical and chemical properties, single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWNTs) show a wide scope of prospective applications in many fields. Normally, SWNTs are obtained as a mixture of nanotubes with varying conductivity and different chirality. Thus, the post isolation of them in line with their chirality is of particular importance. SWNTs are hard to dissolve in water and other solvents owing to their hydrophobic property and their formation of large bundles, which restricts subsequent separation as well as a variety of practical applications. In this study, an aromatic polyimide with pendent triphenylamine units is applied to the formation of a stable dispersion of arc-discharged single-walled carbon nanotubes. Raman spectra demonstrate that semiconducting (19, 0) SWNTs are selectively dispersed in N,N-dimethyl formamide with the assistance of aromatic polyimides with pendent triphenylamine units.