Cleantech & Nano Blog Timely insight on emerging legal and business development

Tag Archives: Carbon Nanotubes

Carbon Nanotube Industry and Patents – Ten Years Later

Posted by J. Steven Rutt on Posted in Patent

I noted several things recently which seem to connect:  (i) a patent of great interest to me finally issued from the US PTO related to an important (to me) carbon nanotube (CNT) application, (ii) many of the PTO’s class 977 nanotech patents seem to relate to carbon nanotubes, and (iii) Nanowerk is listing an updated study on the carbon nanotube industry and how it has grown. So I investigated these connections an ounce.

The US PTO now has granted 7,304 class 977 nanotech patents and, of these, 1,293 (18%)mention carbon nanotube or carbon nanotubes in the abstract or claims. That is remarkable.

Continue reading this entry

Nanotube Electronics

Posted by Bruce Wu on Posted in Electronic Devices

Carbon nanotubes are a promising material for making display control circuits because they’re more efficient than silicon and can be arrayed on flexible surfaces. Until recently, though, making nanotubes into transistors has been a painstaking process. As The Technology Review recently pointed out, researchers at the University of Southern California have now demonstrated large, functional arrays of transistors made using simple methods from batches of carbon nanotubes that are relatively impure. 

Carbon Nanotube as a Fertilzer?

Posted by Bruce Wu on Posted in Nano Biotechnology

Carbon nanotubes are commonly known for their potential applications in electronic devices. But as fertilizers?

It appears that thanks to a team led by Dr. Khodakovskaya and Dr. Biris, these tiny cylinders of carbon atoms might have found their way into being valuable in agriculture as well. For detail, see an article from a recent issue of The Economist.