Michael W. Smith

Very Long Single and Few-Walled Boron Nitride Nanotubes via the Pressurized Vapor/Condenser Method

A new method for producing long, small-diameter, single- and few-walled, boron nitride nanotubes (BNNTs) in macroscopic quantities is reported. The pressurized vapor/condenser (PVC) method produces, without catalysts, highly crystalline, very long, small-diameter, BNNTs. Palm-sized, cotton-like masses of BNNT raw material were grown by this technique and spun directly into centimeters-long yarn. Nanotube lengths were observed to be 100 times that of those grown by the most closely related method. Self-assembly and growth models for these long BNNTs are discussed.

Radial Mechanical Properties of Single-Walled Boron Nitride Nanotubes

The radial mechanical properties of single-walled boron nitride nanotubes (SW-BNNTs) are investigated by atomic force microscopy. Nanomechanical measurements reveal the radial deformation of individual SW-BNNTs in both elastic and plastic regimes. The measured effective radial elastic moduli of SW-BNNTs are found to follow a decreasing trend with an increase in tube diameter, ranging from 40.78 to 1.85 GPa for tube diameters of 0.58 to 2.38 nm. The results show that SW-BNNTs have relatively lower effective radial elastic moduli than single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWCNTs). The axially strong, but radially supple characteristics suggest that SW-BNNTs may be superior to SWCNTs as reinforcing additives for nanocomposite applications.

Radial elasticity of multi-walled boron nitride nanotubes.

We investigated the radial mechanical properties of multi-walled boron nitride nanotubes (MW-BNNTs) using atomic force microscopy. The employed MW-BNNTs were synthesized using pressurized vapor/condenser (PVC) methods and were dispersed in aqueous solution using ultrasonication methods with the aid of ionic surfactants. Our nanomechanical measurements reveal the elastic deformational behaviors of individual BNNTs with two to four tube walls in their transverse directions. Their effective radial elastic moduli were obtained through interpreting their measured radial deformation profiles using Hertzian contact mechanics models. Our results capture the dependences of the effective radial moduli of MW-BNNTs on both the tube outer diameter and the number of tube layers. The effective radial moduli of double-walled BNNTs are found to be several-fold higher than those of single-walled BNNTs within the same diameter range. Our work contributes directly to a complete understanding of the fundamental structural and mechanical properties of BNNTs and the pursuits of their novel structural and electronics applications.

BNNT-mediated irreversible electroporation: its potential on cancer cells

Irreversible lethal electroporation (IRE) is a new non-thermal ablation modality that uses short pulses of high amplitude static electric fields (up 1000 V/cm) to create irreversible pores in the cell membrane, thus, causing cell death. Recently, IRE has emerged as a promising clinical modality for cancer disease treatment. Here, we investigated the responses of tumour human HeLa cells when subjected to IRE in the presence of BNNTs. These consist of tiny tubes of B and N atoms (arranged in hexagons) with diameters ranging from a 1 to 3 nanometres and lengths <2μm. BNNTs have attracted wide attention because of their unique electrical properties. We speculate that BNNTs, when interacting with cells exposed to static electrical fields, amplify locally the electric field, leading to cell death. In this work, electroporation assays were performed with a commercial electroporator using the cell-specific protocol suggested by the supplier (exponential decay wave, time constant 20 ms) with the specific aim to compare IRE in absence and in presence of BNNTs. We observed that BNNTs have the capacity to decrease substantially the voltage required for IRE. When cells were pulsed at 800 V/cm, we observed a 2,2-fold reduction in cell survival in the presence of BNNTs compared to controls. We conclude that the death of the tumour cells exposed to IRE is strongly enhanced in the presence of BNNTs, indicating their potential therapeutic application.