Design of carbon nanotube-based advanced materials for environmental friendly energy-oriented society

2021 Fiscal Year Final Research Report

• Project/Area Number: 16H02083
• Research Category: Grant-in-Aid for Scientific Research (A)
• Allocation Type: Single-year Grants
• Section: 一般
• Research Field: Nanomaterials chemistry
• Research Institution: Kyushu University
• Principal Investigator: Nakashima Naotoshi 九州大学, カーボンニュートラル・エネルギー国際研究所, 特任教授 (80136530)
• Co-Investigator(Kenkyū-buntansha): 白木 智丈 九州大学, 工学研究院, 准教授 (10508089)
• Project Period (FY): 2016-04-01 – 2021-03-31
• Keywords: カーボンナノチューブ / 超分子化学 / 可溶化ナノチューブ / フラビン / 非白金触媒 / 酸素還元反応 / 酸素発生反応 / 空気ー亜鉛電池

Outline of Final Research Achievements

A research on advanced material design of nanocarbon materials for ecology energy and useful for environmental society was carried out, and the obtained important results are summarized as follows. (1) We developed a phthalocyanine iron (II) complex/ carbon nanotube (CNT) composite with high oxygen reduction ability. (2) A new high-performance bifunctional electrode catalyst made from nickel, iron, and sulfur was developed, and applied the material for fabrication of a high-performance Zn-air battery. (3) A nickel coordinated polymer / nanocarbon-based molecular catalyst was developed. (4) Various flavin derivatives having long-chain groups were designed and synthesized, and their self-assembly on the surface of the single-walled CNTs (SWNTs) was used to achieve highly selective separation of semiconducting SWNTs. The separation mechanism was elucidated by computational chemistry. These achievements are of importance for simple selective separation of semiconducting SWNTs.

Free Research Field

ナノカーボン化学、先端材料科学

Academic Significance and Societal Importance of the Research Achievements

カーボンナノチューブ（CNT）は、溶媒に不溶であるが、本申請者は、世界先駆けて「可溶化CNT」のコンセプトを提案、推進してきた。本研究では、この新素材「溶解CNT」を用い、社会が求める画期的な電池材料開発、ならびに簡便かつ超高効率での半導体性CNT分離研究を展開した。具体的には、CNTを素材として、高性能の酸素還元能、並びに酸素還元、酸素発生能の２官能性電極触媒能を持つ電極触媒の開発に成功し、これらを用いて高性能空気―亜鉛電池を開発した。本研究は、電池や分子触媒における先端エネルギー材料の開発にとって重要な成果であるとともに、簡便なSWNTの選択的分離に対する大きな進展である。