World’s First Commercialization of “Nanofibers”

A Korean venture company has put into use a microfiber that is 100 times stronger than steel.

A micro fiber is made of ultra-micro fibers that are a few-nanometers thick (1nm is 1×10−9 meters). Micro fibers are high-tech material that can be used to make bulletproof clothes or lithium-ion batteries for mobile phones.

On March 25, Cluster Instruments, a venture firm that specializes in nanotechnology, announced that it has succeeded in test-producing nanofibers, using dispersing and stabilizing technologies. Cluster Instruments’ nanofibers contain carbon nano tubes, and the company developed the dispersing and stabilizing know-how on its own. A carbon nano tube refers to the material in which six carbons are linked to form a single tube-shaped material.

According to the company, they have spun ultra-micro fibers of 50nm by charging an injector-shaped spraying device of carbon nano tubes (CNT) with 10,000V to 15,000V electricity. The technology is called “electro spinning.”

At present, even well known textile companies both at home and abroad cannot go beyond test-producing CNT-embedded nanofibers for lab use. If Cluster Instruments is able to mass-produce the fibers, the product would greatly benefit the firm.

Chu Gyo-jin, a Cluster Instruments’ researcher, further explained, “The CNT-embedded nanofibers we have made are 100 times stronger than steel and 10 times more conductive than diamonds. Still, they are as flexible as other ordinary fibers. You can make lithium-ion batteries or polymer gel electrolytes with them.”

Jin-Hup Song jinhup@donga.com