Exploring transport and phase behavior in nanoporous carbon materials

Abstract

Understanding transport and phase behavior in nanopores has a substantial impact on applications involving membrane fabrication, single-molecule detection, oil reservoir modeling, and drug delivery. While transport and phase behavior in larger nanopores (>50 nm) approach bulk or are well-described by continuum models, much less is known about much smaller nanopores where the diameter of the pore is on the order of the molecular size of the internal fluid. This thesis provides experimental insight into the diameter dependence of ionic transport and fluid phase transitions inside carbon nanotube (CNT) nanopores (1-2 nm). For substances confined inside slightly larger pore sizes (roughly 4-25 nm in diameter), methods are presented for predicting the diameter-dependent freezing point changes. This work also demonstrates the use of patch clamp for generating and studying soft polymer-based nanopores.