{"id":8842,"date":"2017-03-09T12:56:30","date_gmt":"2017-03-09T17:56:30","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/textiles.ncsu.edu\/news\/?p=8842"},"modified":"2024-05-08T11:43:51","modified_gmt":"2024-05-08T15:43:51","slug":"philip-bradford-nanofibers","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/textiles.ncsu.edu\/news\/2017\/03\/philip-bradford-nanofibers\/","title":{"rendered":"Philip Bradford: Putting Nanofibers to Work in Novel Ways"},"content":{"rendered":"\n\n\n\n\n
By Alyson Tuck<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n The average person would look at the bag of carbon nanotubes in Dr. Philip Bradford\u2019s<\/a> office at the Wilson College of Textiles and see an unimpressive pile of black powder. But to Bradford, associate professor of Textile Engineering, Chemistry and Science<\/a>, those nanofibers are a treasure trove of untapped applications. Bradford\u2019s research aims to make carbon nanotubes in unique ways for novel applications, making fighter jets stronger, batteries more conductive and air filters more effective. And that\u2019s just the beginning.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Carbon nanotubes \u2014 hollow, tube-shaped nanofibers made of pure carbon \u2014 carry properties that make them a superstar among fibers. As if being ultralight, flexible and among the strongest man-made materials weren\u2019t enough, they have a secret weapon: They are electrically conductive. This unique trait for a fiber, Bradford explained, opens up new areas of research and a world of interesting applications where electrical conductivity would create a superior product.<\/p>\n\n\n\n In his Wilson College of Textiles lab, Bradford (B.S. Textiles Engineering \u201905, M.S. Textiles Engineering \u201907, Ph.D. Materials Science and Engineering \u201910) and his team of graduate students, postdocs and undergraduate lab assistants grow carbon nanotubes to use in their research. While producing carbon nanotubes isn\u2019t groundbreaking, Bradford\u2019s process and the characteristics of his particular fibers are.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Bradford has developed a technique for making extremely long nanotubes, up to 5 mm. Though that doesn\u2019t sound long, this diameter-to-length ratio is similar to that of a 30-foot long human hair. This impressive length allows Bradford to make fabric-like material from these fibers without adding binders that would dilute their exceptional properties. In addition to being long, Bradford\u2019s carbon nanotubes are very clean, which allows the nanotubes to stick together in strong sheets, and eventually fabric as large as 15 square inches.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The ability to make these nanotubes that we can draw into sheets has been critical for our research because it really does set us apart from other research groups.<\/p><\/div><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\nFrom Carbon to Fabric<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Exploring Applications<\/h3>\n\n\n\n