Rev.Adv.Mater.Sci. (RAMS)
No 1/2, Vol. 37, 2014, pages 53-82

PROCESSING AND PROPERTIES OF CARBON NANOTUBE/ALUMINA NANOCOMPOSITES: A REVIEW

Soumya Sarkar and Probal Kr. Das

Abstract

Carbon nanotube having exceptional material properties gained substantial interest as superior reinforcing phase over conventional macroscopic fillers in making advanced nanocomposites for high performance applications. Present review sequentially describes processing of some novel carbon nanotube/alumina nanocomposites giving absolute emphasize on every unit operation steps from raw material selection, their pre-treatment, purification, green processing and sintering. The upper and lower limits of nanotube loading have been evaluated using simple geometry to comment on effective loading range of this nano-filler in alumina. Properties of sintered nanocomposites have also been critically surveyed to assess extent of changes upon nanotube incorporation in alumina. While this review unveils primary challenges involved in processing of carbon nanotube/alumina nanocomposite, it simultaneously depicts the proposed routes to overcome such issues for making nanocomposites offering improved performance over alumina for advanced futuristic applications.

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