The use of anionic gum arabic as a dispersant for multi-walled carbon nanotubes in an aqueous solution.

Stable homogeneous suspensions of multi-walled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs) were prepared using gum arabic (GA) as a dispersant. By measuring adsorption isotherm, the surface chemical properties of the MWCNTs were investigated. The dispersion of MWCNTs in aqueous solution was examined with transmission electron microscopy and ultraviolet visible spectroscopy. The stabilization mechanism of the MWCNTs in aqueous solution using the GA surfactant was discussed. The isotherm of GA adsorption on MWCNTs indicates a typical two-step mechanism of adsorption (namely "SL"), and the adsorption isotherm reaches the saturation plateau at a GA concentration of 0.45 g x L(-1). The concentration measurement of MWCNTs shows that the optimum concentration of GA is 0.45 g x L(-1).