High temperature carbon nanotube – Nanofiber hybrid filters

Novel hybrid filters composed of aligned carbon nanotube (CNT) sheets, sandwiched between electrospun polyimide (PI) nanofiber membranes serving as the supporting layers, were fabricated for the capture of fine particles. The CNT sheets and PI nanofiber membranes were thermally bonded together by melting electrospun polyetherimide (PEI) nanofibers. Two different kinds of filter structures were prepared, where multiple layers of aligned CNT sheets were either stacked together on top of each other or separated from each other by a PEI layer. The filtration performance tests showed that the filtration efficiency increased with increasing number of CNT sheets. The maximum filtration efficiency reached 99.99% at 5.3 cm/s face velocity for 0.3 μm particles by the 4-layer CNT filter, while the pressure drop was only 120 Pa. In mechanical testing, the CNT sheets also reinforced the hybrid filters, even though the PI nanofiber membrane already had relatively high mechanical properties. The tensile strength of the 4-layer CNT hybrid filters was 9 MPa, reaching the highest tier of strength reported for nanofiber membranes. In addition to high efficiency and low pressure drop, the hybrid all-nanofiber filters are also targeted for use in hot gas filtration applications where temperatures reach 200–250 °C.