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Carbon nanotubes are being used to create carbon nanofibers. These nanofibers have promising properties for medical applications. They may also be woven to create useful materials. Scientists and engineers are only just begining to understand the benfits nanofibers will give us in the comming years.

A Fullerene is a stable form of Carbon that exploits properties of the Carbon atom. The first Fullerene discovered was the C60 form of Carbon. The form of C60 is similar to the geodesic dome invented by architect Buckminster Fuller. The class of materials were called "buckminsterfullerenes" and the C60 form of Carbon became known as a "Buckyball."

In subsequent years, other stable forms of Carbon have been found such as C70. There are now many Fullerenes created by adding atoms of other elements to form interesting compounds. One class revolves around encapsulating alkali metals inside the Fullerene. Such materials have interesting properties including superconductivity and high mechanical strength.

Solid C60 is an insulator.

Buckyballs can survive impacts up to 20,000 mph.

C60 and C70 Fullerenes have been found in meteor impact craters (U. of Arizona).

Quote from Rice University Press release: "Buckyballs, whose chemical notation is C60, are hollow, soccerball-shaped molecules containing 60 carbon atoms. Their diameter is just one-billionth of a meter, or one nanometer, and their discovery at Rice in 1985 is widely regarded as an early milestone in the field of nanotechnology."

For pictures of Fullerenes, try this link to SUNY:
Fullerene Pics

Links on how to make Fullerenes (particularly C60 and C70):
Production of Fullerene

Where to buy pure Fullerene material:
Source of Fullerene materials

Where to buy pure carbon nanotubes:
Source of carbon nanotubes

Fullerene and nanotube supplier:
Fullerene and nanotube supplier

Fullerene Dicsoveries

Material - Where - When - Notes
C60
C70
C84
C540
K3C60 - Bell Labs - 1991 - becomes a superconductor at low temps.


(note final will have proper subscript for atom counts)

For information on fiber technology ( fibre technology ), try:

Fiber information, Fibre information

Cover fullerene, buckyball, research, data, nanotube, nanotechnology, nanotech, nanotube101, nanotube101.com and material applications.