AVS 53rd International Symposium
    Nanometer-scale Science and Technology Thursday Sessions
       Session NS-ThP

Paper NS-ThP12
Diffusion Characteristics of Gases through Y-shaped Carbon Nanotubes using Molecular Dynamics Simulations

Thursday, November 16, 2006, 5:30 pm, Room 3rd Floor Lobby

Session: Nanoscale Science and Technology Poster Session
Presenter: J. Myers, University of Florida
Authors: J. Myers, University of Florida
S.-J. Heo, University of Florida
S.B. Sinnott, University of Florida
Correspondent: Click to Email
In the modern pharmaceutical and chemical industries, solutions of extremely high purity are needed. Current filtration methods are reaching the limits of their abilities, so new filters must be developed. One possible filter is a Y-shaped carbon nanotube (Y-tube). By changing the sizes of the arms of the Y-tube, custom molecular filtration is theoretically possible. Through the use of classical molecular dynamics simulations, these hypotheses will be tested. These particular simulations use Y-tubes of different sizes and chiralities to determine the effect of these factors on gaseous diffusion and separation. Gas reservoirs of methane and an isobutane/methane mix are allowed to diffuse through each Y-tube. In the case of the isobutane/methane reservoir, it is hypothesized that the larger molecule, isobutane, will not diffuse down the smallest arm. The overall goal of this research is to gain a fundamental understanding of diffusion through Y-shaped carbon nanotubes to support and guide future studies. This research is supported by a National Science Foundation grant through the Network for Computational Nanotechnology (grant no. EEC-02288390).