Active in the SBIR arena amost coincident with the firm's formation in 1998-99 and still regularly involved in recent years, Carbon Solutions Inc was established with the goal of manufacturing single-walled carbon nanotubes in bulk quantities. The company was one of the first to develop quality control and quality assurance criteria for industrial sales of carbon nanotubes that are suitable for virtually any application. The firm views carbon nanotubes as macromolecules that should be ideal constituents of polymers, copolymers, polymer composites, electronic materials and biological structures that have outstanding physical properties with high strength, exceptional thermal conductivity and singular electronic properties that distinguish them from all other nanomaterials. The issues that face the nascent carbon nanotube industry are frequently underestimated in the scientific literature and quality control is virtually nonexistent. Carbon nanotubes still cost more than gold, most preparations are highly impure and many of the purifications reported in the literature do not work as stated. CSI was established to aid in the transition of carbon nanotubes from a research curiosity to a specialty chemical and finally into a commodity that is found in a wide range of useful products that require the performance of the ultimate carbon nanofiber. The company currently has strong business relationships with leading companies interested in the development of carbon nanotube-based sensors, flexible electronics, transparent conductors, infrared and visible photodetectors.
