NASA has awarded Rice University’s Carbon Nanotechnology Laboratory a four-year, $11
million contract
http://nanotechwire.com/news.asp?nid=1852
NASA has awarded Rice University’s Carbon Nanotechnology Laboratory a four-year, $11
million contract to produce a prototype power cable made entirely of carbon nanotubes.
The new project will be discussed with media in a briefing at the Johnson Space Center at 2 p.m.
CDT April 26. Available to media in that session will be:
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Jefferson D. Howell, Jr., Director, NASA Johnson Space Center
Richard Smalley, Director, Carbon Nanotechnology Laboratory (CNL)
The project aims to pioneer methods of producing pure nanotube power cables, known as
quantum wires, which may conduct electricity up to 10 times better than copper and weigh about
one-sixth as much. Such technologies may advance NASA's plans to return humans to the moon
and eventually travel to Mars and beyond.
“Technology advances like these are exactly what will be needed to realize the future of space
exploration,” Howell said. “We are extremely fortunate to be able to pool the unique expertise
available at JSC, Rice and the other collaborators in this effort.”
The contract was awarded by NASA’s Exploration Systems Mission Directorate. It calls for an
additional $4 million in related research at JSC, where researchers will conduct crucial work in
the area of nanotube growth, and at NASA’s Glenn Research Center, where nanotube composites
will be developed for fuel cell components.
Rice’s portion of the funding includes support for collaborative projects at Houston-based
Carbon Nanotechnologies Inc., which specializes in large-scale nanotube production; GHG
Corp.; Duke University and the University of Pennsylvania.
“In the Space Shuttle, the primary power distribution system accounts for almost 7 percent of the
craft’s weight,” said Smalley, University Professor, the Gene and Norman Hackerman Professor
of Chemistry, professor of physics and the lead researcher on the project.. “To support additional
instrumentation and broadband communications, NASA’s next generation of human and robotic
spacecraft will need far more power. For ships assembled in orbit, a copper power distribution
system could wind up accounting for one-quarter the weight of the vessel.”
The contract calls for CNL to provide NASA a one-meter prototype of a quantum wire by 2010.
This will require major breakthroughs in the production and processing of nanotubes. Notably, a
way has yet to be found to produce a specific type of nanotube, and of the hundreds of types
available, only about 2 percent are pure metals. These metallic tubes – also known as “armchair”
nanotubes – are the only types that conduct electricity well enough for quantum wires.
“We need to find a way to make just the nanotubes we want, and we need them in large
quantities,” said CNL Executive Director Howard Schmidt. “Another major focus of the research
will be finding new ways to combine armchair nanotubes, which are single molecules just a
billionth of a meter wide, into large-scale fibers and wires.”
The April 26 briefing will be available to media in attendance only and will not be broadcast on
NASA Television.
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About the Project
The JSC Carbon Nanotube Project is focused on developing bulk
nanotube production, purification and application of Single-Wall
Carbon Nanotubes (SWNT's). Production techniques being
investigated are pulsed laser vaporization (PLV), arc discharge and a
gas phase process (HiPco) in collaboration with Rice University.
The goal of our project is to develop nanotube applications for use in
human space exploration. Because of their superior strength-toweight ratio, SWNT composites are expected to reduce spacecraft
weight by 50% or more. Other exploration applications include
energy storage, life support systems, thermal materials,
nanoelectronics, nanosensors, electrostatic discharge materials, and
biomedical applications.
JSC's distinctive effort is the study of nanotube growth using the
PLV facility. Our world class diagnostic facility enables the
study of the plasma plume during nanotube production to
understand nanotube formation processes and yield optimization
techniques. After production, nanotube quality, diameter and
purity are characterized by Raman spectroscopy, SEM, TEM,
TGA, and UV/VIS/NIR spectral analyses.
SWNT technology applications are also supported through the Small
Business Innovative Research Program. These technologies include
ultracapacitors and structural composite materials. These and other
fields will likely be revolutionized due to the size and properties of
nanotubes. Additional innovative applications will soon become
evident as nanotechnology continues to mature.
JSC Nanotube Project Goals
1. Ensure a reliable source of nanotubes with controlled properties
(length, purity, diameter, chirality) using diagnostics, parametric
studies, and modeling to understand and improve processes.
2. Develop and employ characterization techniques to examine
nanotubes and nanoscale materials.
3. Develop processing methods for nanotubes from various sources
to enhance structural, thermal, electrical, and chemical
properties.
4. Conduct initial studies or sponsor development of applications of
nanoscale materials.
5. Establish a scientific network of academic, industry, and
government partners to leverage resources and disseminate
knowledge.
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