Carbon nanotube fibers with dynamic strength up to 14 GPa

XS Zhang and XD Lei and XZ Jia and TZ Sun and JJ Luo and SC Xu and LJ Li and D Yan and YL Shao and ZZ Yong and YY Zhang and XQ Wu and EL Gao and MQ Jian and J Zhang, SCIENCE, 384, 1318-1323 (2024).

DOI: 10.1126/science.adj1082

High dynamic strength is of fundamental importance for fibrous materials that are used in high-strain rate environments. Carbon nanotube fibers are one of the most promising candidates. Using a strategy to optimize hierarchical structures, we fabricated carbon nanotube fibers with a dynamic strength of 14 gigapascals (GPa) and excellent energy absorption. The dynamic performance of the fibers is attributed to the simultaneous breakage of individual nanotubes and delocalization of impact energy that occurs during the high-strain rate loading process; these behaviors are due to improvements in interfacial interactions, nanotube alignment, and densification therein. This work presents an effective strategy to utilize the strength of individual carbon nanotubes at the macroscale and provides fresh mechanism insights.

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