Nanotube 'sponge' has potential in oil spill cleanup

A carbon nanotube sponge that can soak up oil in water with unparalleled efficiency has just been developed, with help from computational simulations.Carbon nanotubes, which consist of atom-thick sheets of carbon rolled into cylinders, have captured scientific attention in recent decades because of their high strength, potential high conductivity and light weight. But producing nanotubes in bulk for specialized applications was often limited by difficulties in controlling the growth process as well as dispersing and sorting the produced nanotubes.[find more]