Morphological Modification of MWCNT Functionalized with HNO₃/H₂SO₄ Mixtures

The acidic oxidation with HNO₃/H₂SO₄ mixtures is widely reported as an effective method to functionalize multi-walled carbon nanotubes (MWCNT). Although effective, a bad control of the oxidation conditions frequently cause serious modifications of carbon nanotube network, limiting further potential applications. Investigations about the effect of functionalization operating conditions on the morphological, chemical and chemical-physical properties of MWCNT can be useful for a proper setting of oxidation reactions of MWCNT according to their specific applications. In this work the effect of HNO₃/H₂SO₄ ratio on the morphological and chemical-physical properties and on the degree of functionalization of MWCNT was investigated. Electron microscopy, thermogravimetric, X-ray diffraction, titration and water dispersion analyses clearly revealed that the increase of the amount of concentrated sulphuric acid in the HNO₃/H₂SO₄ mixture lead to an increase of the amount of functional groups on the MWCNT surface but also to an increase of structural damage in terms of tube cutting and generation of additional defects in the graphitic network of pristine MWCNT.