Achilleas Sesis (pictured below left), an EngD student in the Electrochemistry group, has been awarded the Ernest Littauer prize by the University of Surrey for the best oral presentation (out of 16 Research Engineers) at its annual Engineering Doctorate Micro and Nanomaterials conference. The title of the talk was 'Disentangling bubbles, carbon nanotubes and surfactants'.

The award is named after Ernest Littauer, who was the VP of Lockheed Martin but also an alumnus of the metallurgy department of Battersea College, a forerunner of the University of Surrey. He has been a very generous benefactor.

The abstract of the talk is:

The dispersion of carbon nanotubes (CNTs) is a critical processing step for many potential applications, since optimising the interaction between their nanoscale surface and the bulk media could substantially improve the performance of the macroscale structure. Ultrasonic agitation is widely used to overcome the tendency of CNTs to agglomerate due to van der Waals forces, where the medium is typically either an aqueous solution containing surfactant or an organic solvent. However, the dispersion process is often poorly controlled and there is a clear need for standardisation of the multitude of recipes quoted in the literature, most of which specify only an input power and an exposure time for the ultrasonic step. In this work we highlight the importance of quantifying the amount of cavitation in the solution, rather than simply quoting the input power, during ultrasonic dispersion of CNTs. Measurement of the amount of cavitation is made possible using an NPL Cavimeter™ technology and can be related to the degree of dispersion and various physicochemical changes induced in the CNTs and the solution. The significant implication for researchers in the field of nanomaterials is that recipes quoted in the literature are of limited value unless the amount of cavitation during ultrasonic processing is well defined and controlled.

For further information, please contact Achilleas Sesis