Interaction Of Single-walled Carbon Nanotubes Research Articles

The Effect of Single-Walled Carbon Nanotubes on UDP-Glucuronosyltransferase 1A Activity in Human Liver

Single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWCNTs) are made from rolled single graphene sheets with a diameter in the nanometer range and are potential carriers for drug delivery systems. However, their effects on uridine 5'-diphosphate-glucuronosyltransferase (UGT) 1A activities remain unclear. The present study aimed to investigate the effect of two kinds of SWCNTs (EC1.5-P- and FH-P-SWCNTs) and other nanocarbons on human UGT1A activity due to the proposed application of SWCNTs in drug and gene delivery. β-Estradiol 3-glucuronidation, which is catalyzed mainly by UGT1A1, was inhibited by 99 and 76% in the presence of 0.1 mg/mL EC1.5-P- and FH-P-SWCNTs in human liver microsomes, respectively. The observed decrease of free UGT1A1 protein in the enzyme reaction mixture suggests a higher interaction with SWCNTs, and indicates the inhibition of β-estradiol 3-glucuronidation. Imipramine N-glucuronidation, which is formed mainly by UGT1A4, was also decreased by SWCNTs. Serotonin glucuronidation, which is mainly responsible for UGT1A6, was only influenced by specific nanocarbons in human liver microsomes. The attenuation of free UGT1A6 protein was observed with SWCNTs and carbon black, indicating that UGT1A6 activity was not influenced by the direct interaction of SWCNTs. We also observed a 127% increase by FH-P-SWCNTs for propofol glucuronidation in human liver microsomes, which is catalyzed mainly by UGT1A9. The values of maximum velocity and intrinsic clearance for propofol glucuronidation in the presence of FH-P-SWCNT were 1.8- and 2.0-fold higher than those of the control in human liver microsomes. These results suggest that the effects of SWCNTs on UGT1A are different among isoforms.

Governing Factors for Carbon Nanotube Dispersion in Organic Solvents Estimated by Machine Learning

AbstractThe insolubility of single‐walled carbon nanotubes (SWCNTs) in most common organic solvents has been the cause of a bottleneck in their practical utilization. Aqueous SWCNT inks containing amphiphilic surfactants are widely used for processing including coatings and composite fabrication. Most practical processes are, however, designed to be compatible with organic solvents, generating a technological mismatch between production and utilization. This work reports on the surfactant‐assisted dispersion of SWCNTs in useful organic solvents, at up to quantitative yields. A feature extraction based on machine learning offers seemingly important, highly intuitive physicochemical factors that lead to efficient dispersion. These elucidated factors are associated not only with solvents–surfactant, but also solvent–SWCNT interactions. The organic SWCNT dispersion as well as its research methodology developed here may find widespread applications ranging from nanofluidics to functional materials design.

Synthesis of V2O5/Single-Walled Carbon Nanotubes Integrated into Nanostructured Composites as Cathode Materials in High Performance Lithium-Ion Batteries

Vanadium pentoxide (V2O5)-anchored single-walled carbon nanotube (SWCNT) composites have been developed through a simple sol–gel process, followed by hydrothermal treatment. The resulting material is suitable for use in flexible ultra-high capacity electrode applications for lithium-ion batteries. The unique combination of V2O5 with 0.2 wt.% of SWCNT offers a highly conductive three-dimensional network. This ultimately alleviates the low lithium-ion intercalation seen in V2O5 itself and facilitates vanadium redox reactions. The integration of SWCNTs into the layered structure of V2O5 leads to a high specific capacity of 390 mAhg−1 at 0.1 C between 1.8 to 3.8 V, which is close to the theoretical capacity of V2O5 (443 mAhg−1). In recent research, most of the V2O5 with carbonaceous materials shows higher specific capacity but limited cyclability and poor rate capability. In this work, good cyclability with only 0.3% per cycle degradation during 200 cycles and enhanced rate capability of 178 mAhg−1 at 10 C have been achieved. The excellent electrochemical kinetics during lithiation/delithiation is attributed to the chemical interaction of SWCNTs entrapped between layers of the V2O5 nanostructured network. Proper dispersion of SWCNTs into the V2O5 structure, and its resulting effects, have been validated by SEM, TEM, XPS, XRD, and electrical resistivity measurements. This innovative hybrid material offers a new direction for the large-scale production of high-performance cathode materials for advanced flexible and structural battery applications.

Study on the interfacial contact behavior of carbon nanotubes and asphalt binders and adhesion energy of modified asphalt on aggregate surface by using molecular dynamics simulation

In this work, a comprehensive study has been conducted on the interfacial contact behavior of carbon nanotubes (CNTs) and asphalt binders as well as the influence of multi-walled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs) embedded into asphalt on the adhesion ability of asphalt on aggregate surface at atomic scale. CNT/asphalt composite and asphalt-aggregate interface models were investigated by molecular dynamics (MD) simulations to evaluate the molecular interactions of materials. The interfacial adhesion characteristics of functionalized single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWCNTs) and MWCNTs with asphalt binders were investigated by performing pull-out simulations and the interactions of SWCNTs and asphalt components were analyzed. The obtained results showed that asphalt components with low molecular weight were more easily adsorbed by SWCNTs than higher weight components. For CNTs/asphalt composite model, Van der Waals (VdW) energy is much higher than electrostatic energy accounting for a great portion of interaction energy. Although functional groups on the surface of CNTs can increase interfacial interaction, this increase is far less than the enhancement of interaction energy and interfacial shear stress between MWCNTs and asphalt binders. Therefore, MWCNTs are regarded as a better additive to be inserted into asphalt binders to enhance the interfacial adhesion of CNTs/asphalt composites. In addition, the results of adhesion energy change of asphalt-aggregate interface models indicated that MWCNT addition into asphalt significantly increased the adhesion ability of asphalt on aggregate surface (especially for alkaline aggregates).

The Impacts of Polyisoprene Physical Interactions on Sorting of Single-Wall Carbon Nanotubes.

Conjugated polymer sorting is currently the best method to select large-diameter single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWCNTs) with tunable narrow chirality in the adaption of highly desired electronics applications. The acceleration on conjugated polymers-SWCNTs interaction with long-term stability through different molecular designs; for example, longer alkyl side-chains or conjugation moieties have been extensively developed in recent years. However, the importance of the macromolecules with abundant van der Waals (VDW) interaction in the conjugated-based block copolymer system acting during SWCNTs sorting is not clearly demonstrated. In this work, a conjugated diblock copolymer involving polyisoprene (PI) and highly dense π-interaction of poly (9,9-dioctylfluorene) (PFO) is utilized to investigate the impact of natural rubber PI physical interaction on sorting effectiveness and stability. Through the rational design of diblock copolymer, PFO with ≈1200 isoprene units can remarkably enhance SWCNTs sorting ability and selected few chiralities with a diameter of ≈0.83-1.1nm and highly stable solution for more than 1 year. The introduction of long-chain PI system is attributed not only to form weak VDW force with SWCNTs and strengthen the wrapping of PFO around the semiconducting SWCNTs but also to act as a barrier among nanotubes to prevent reaggregation of sorted SWCNTs.

Light-Induced Sulfur Transport inside Single-Walled Carbon Nanotubes.

Filling of single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWCNTs) and extraction of the encapsulated species from their cavities are perspective treatments for tuning the functional properties of SWCNT-based materials. Here, we have investigated sulfur-modified SWCNTs synthesized by the ampoule method. The morphology and chemical states of carbon and sulfur were analyzed by transmission electron microscopy, Raman scattering, thermogravimetric analysis, X-ray photoelectron and near-edge X-ray absorption fine structure spectroscopies. Successful encapsulation of sulfur inside SWCNTs cavities was demonstrated. The peculiarities of interactions of SWCNTs with encapsulated and external sulfur species were analyzed in details. In particular, the donor–acceptor interaction between encapsulated sulfur and host SWCNT is experimentally demonstrated. The sulfur-filled SWCNTs were continuously irradiated in situ with polychromatic photon beam of high intensity. Comparison of X-ray spectra of the samples before and after the treatment revealed sulfur transport from the interior to the surface of SWCNTs bundles, in particular extraction of sulfur from the SWCNT cavity. These results show that the moderate heating of filled nanotubes could be used to de-encapsulate the guest species tuning the local composition, and hence, the functional properties of SWCNT-based materials.

Modelling of Paclitaxel Conjugated with Carbon Nanotubes as an Antitumor Agent for Cancer Therapy.

Functionalized carbon nanoparticles (CNPs) show great promise for various drug delivery applications. These CNPs have distinct physical and chemical properties, such as low solubility, very high conductivity, and drug loading capability, and are thus important nanodevices for cancer therapy. Cancer is a highly challenging disease, because its therapy involves distinguishing diseased cells from healthy ones. This study aimed to determine the ability of CNPs conjugated with a chemotherapeutic agent to inhibit cancer cell growth. We developed two models to determine the effectiveness of paclitaxel (PTX) as an antitumor agent bonded to single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWCNTs) varying in radius (r). The models were used to mathematically evaluate the energy arising from the PTX-SWCNT interaction. The first model divided the PTX molecule into 15 subcomponents: 4 imidazole rings, 1 group of atoms forming a cylindrical nanotube, 6 methyl groups (small spheres represented as individual CH₃ molecules), 3 carboxyl groups (medium-sized spheres represented as individual CO₂ molecules), and 1 large sphere. In the second model, PTX was modeled as a spherical cage with a spheroidal structure. Next, we determined the minimum interaction energy between each subcomponent and an SWCNT of radius r, and then summed the interactions to determine the total energy (E). The numerical results indicated that SWCNTs can be loaded with PTX. We also determined the critical nanotube r required for acceptance of the PTX molecule. We believe that the findings of this research will encourage the development of new nanodevices capable of delivering larger amounts of drugs, genes, and proteins.

Single-Walled Carbon Nanotube-Assisted Antibiotic Delivery and Imaging in S. epidermidis Strains Addressing Antibiotic Resistance.

Although conventional antibiotics have evolved as a staple of modern medicine, increasing antibiotic resistance and the lack of antibiotic efficacy against new bacterial threats is becoming a major medical threat. In this work, we employ single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWCNTs) known to deliver and track therapeutics in mammalian cells via intrinsic near-infrared fluorescence as carriers enhancing antibacterial delivery of doxycycline and methicillin. SWCNTs dispersed in water by antibiotics without the use of toxic bile salt surfactants facilitate efficacy enhancement for both antibiotics against Staphylococcus epidermidis strain showing minimal sensitivity to methicillin. Doxycycline to which the strain did not show resistance in complex with SWCNTs provides only minor increase in efficacy, whereas the SWCNTs/methicillin complex yields up to 40-fold efficacy enhancement over antibiotics alone, suggesting that SWCNT-assisted delivery may circumvent antibiotic resistance in that bacterial strain. At the same time SWCNT/antibiotic formulations appear to be less toxic to mammalian cells than antibiotics alone suggesting that nanomaterial platforms may not restrict potential biomedical applications. The improvement in antibacterial performance with SWCNT delivery is tested via 3 independent assays—colony count, MIC (Minimal Inhibitory Concentration) turbidity and disk diffusion, with the statistical significance of the latter verified by ANOVA and Dunnett’s method. The potential mechanism of action is attributed to SWCNT interactions with bacterial cell wall and adherence to the membrane, as substantial association of SWCNT with bacteria is observed—the near-infrared fluorescence microscopy of treated bacteria shows localization of SWCNT fluorescence in bacterial clusters, scanning electron microscopy verifies SWCNT association with bacterial surface, whereas transmission electron microscopy shows individual SWCNT penetration into bacterial cell wall. This work characterizes SWCNTs as novel advantageous antibiotic delivery/imaging agents having the potential to address antibiotic resistance.

Controlling Size‐Dispersion of Single Walled Carbon Nanotubes by Interaction with Polyoxometalates Armed with a Tryptophan Tweezer

A bis‐tryptophan tweezer was installed on a polyoxometalate (POM) surface via a bis‐amide covalent bond, yielding the enantiopure hybrid POM with C2 symmetry, as a result of the regioselective functionalization of decatungosilicate [γ‐SiW10O36]8– at the lacunary site. The combined polyanionic and receptor properties are instrumental for a POM‐driven solubilization and enrichment of single walled carbon nanotubes (SWCNTs) with diameter <1.1 nm, as demonstrated by Raman and UV/Vis‐NIR evidence, in agreement with the calculated energetics of the tryptophan tweezer–SWCNT interaction.

Interaction of Single-Walled Carbon Nanotubes (SWCNTs) with Photosynthetic Organisms

For years, the distinctive optical and structural properties of single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWCNTs) have inspired the development of promising applications in the field of cell nanobiotechnology. In particular, the synergistic interaction of SWCNTs with photosynthetic organisms has the potential to enhance the native performance of biological machineries, paving the way for novel, renewable, and low cost solutions for light-harvesting, energy conversion, subcellular sensing, and DNA delivery. Recent studies have largely focused on enabling cellular uptake of SWCNTs by engineering the SWCNT surface through non-covalent side-wall functionalizations. Non-covalent functionalization with a rich variety of biomolecules and polymers has been shown to potentially increase SWCNT solubility and membrane translocation while endowing these nanostructures with enhanced biocompatibility. We performed a systematic investigation of the effect of SWCNT functionalization on membrane penetration properties using a novel biological host. A custom-built optical setup was used for the unprecedented characterization of near-infrared fluorescence emissions of internalized SWCNTs. These results were used to inform fuctionalization design rules for SWCNT internalization, and more broadly, present a versatile approach towards imaging internalized SWCNTs in biological systems.

Effects of serum albumin on the degradation and cytotoxicity of single-walled carbon nanotubes

Neutrophil myeloperoxidase (MPO) and peroxynitrite (ONOO−) can oxidatively biodegrade carboxylated single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWCNTs). The protein–SWCNTs interactions will play an important role in the degradation and cytotoxicity of nanotubes. Here, we investigated the binding of bovine serum albumin (BSA, a common and well-characterized model blood serum protein) to SWCNTs, and found that the hydrophobic and electrostatic interactions might be crucial factors in stabilizing the binding of SWCNTs with BSA. The binding of BSA could impair SWCNTs biodegradation in vitro through the competitive adsorption to nanotube. Both SWCNTs and BSA-SWCNTs were significantly degraded in zymosan-stimulated macrophages, and the degradation degree was more for BSA-SWCNTs. The mechanism for SWCNTs degradation in activated macrophages was further investigated to demonstrate the dominant participation of MPO and ONOO−-driven pathways. Moreover, binding of BSA to SWCNTs reduced cytotoxicity and degraded nanotubes induced less cytotoxicity than non-degraded nanotubes. The binding of BSA may be an important determinant for the biodegradation and cytotoxicity of SWCNTs in inflammatory cells, and therefore, provide a new route to mitigate the potential toxicity of nanotubes in future biomedical applications.

Binding of human IgG to single-walled carbon nanotubes accelerated myeloperoxidase-mediated degradation in activated neutrophils

The binding of protein to carboxylated single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWCNTs) was believed to play an important role in the biological effects of nanotubes. However, the effects of protein–SWCNTs interactions on the oxidative degradation of nanotubes were not stressed enough. Here, we investigated the binding of human immunoglobulin G (IgG) to SWCNTs, and found that the preferred binding site was located in the Fc region of IgG. The hydrophobic and electrostatic interactions might be the crucial factors in stabilizing the binding of SWCNTs with IgG. Through the competitive binding of IgG and myeloperoxidase (MPO) to nanotube surfaces, the binding of IgG could impair MPO-induced SWCNTs biodegradation in vitro. However, both SWCNTs and IgG-SWCNTs were significantly degraded in zymosan-stimulated neutrophils, and the degradation degree was more for IgG-SWCNTs. These results suggest that the binding of IgG may be an important determinant for MPO-mediated SWCNTs biodegradation in activated human inflammatory cells.

Adsorption and desorption of dissolved organic matter by carbon nanotubes: Effects of solution chemistry

Increasing use of carbon nanotubes (CNTs) has led to their introduction into the environment where they can interact with dissolved organic matter (DOM). This study focuses on solution chemistry effects on DOM adsorption/desorption processes by single-walled CNTs (SWCNTs). Our data show that DOM adsorption is controlled by the attachment of DOM molecules to the SWCNTs, and that the initial adsorption rate is dependent on solution parameters. Adsorbed amount of DOM at high ionic strength was limited, possibly due to alterations in SWCNT bundling. Desorption of DOM performed at low pH resulted in additional DOM adsorption, whereas at high pH, adsorbed DOM amount decreased. The extent of desorption conducted at increased ionic strength was dependent on pre-adsorbed DOM concentration: low DOM loading stimulated additional adsorption of DOM, whereas high DOM loading facilitated release of adsorbed DOM. Elevated ionic strength and increased adsorbed amount of DOM reduced the oxidation temperature of the SWCNTs, suggesting that changes in the assembly of the SWCNTs had occurred. Moreover, DOM-coated SWCNTs at increased ionic strength provided fewer sites for atrazine adsorption. This study enhances our understanding of DOM–SWCNT interactions in aqueous systems influenced by rapid changes in salinity, and facilitates potential use of SWCNTs in water-purification technologies.

A novel electrochemical aptasensor based on single-walled carbon nanotubes, gold electrode and complimentary strand of aptamer for ultrasensitive detection of cocaine.

Cocaine is a strong central nervous system stimulant and one of the most commonly abused drugs. In this study, an electrochemical aptasensor was designed for sensitive and selective detection of cocaine, based on single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWNTs), gold electrode and complimentary strand of aptamer (CS). This electrochemical aptasensor inherits properties of SWNTs and gold such as large surface area and high electrochemical conductivity, as well as high affinity and selectivity of aptamer toward its target and the stronger interaction of SWNTs with single-stranded DNA (ssDNA) than double-stranded DNA (dsDNA). In the absence of cocaine, a little amount of SWNTs bind to Aptamer-CS-modified electrode, so that the electrochemical signal is weak. In the presence of cocaine, aptamer binds to cocaine, leaves the surface of electrode. So that, a large amount of SWNTs bind to CS-modified electrode, generating to a strong electrochemical signal. The designed electrochemical aptasensor showed good selectivity toward cocaine with a limit of detection (LOD) as low as 105 pM. Moreover, the fabricated electrochemical aptasensor was successfully applied to detect cocaine in serum with a LOD as low as 136 pM.

Carbon nanotube proximity influences rice DNA

The uptake of carbon nanotubes (CNT) influences the output of plants, potentially through interactions between the DNA and CNTs. However, little is known about the changes in the plant DNA due to CNT proximity. We report changes in rice plant DNA in the proximity of single walled CNT (SWCNT) using molecular dynamics simulations. The DNA experiences breaking and forming of hydrogen bonds due to unzipping of Watson–Crick (WC) nucleobase pairs and wrapping onto SWCNT. The number of hydrogen bonds between water and DNA nucleobases decreases due to the presence of SWCNT. A higher number of guanine–cytosine (Gua–Cyt) WC hydrogen bonds break as compared to adenine–thymine (Ade–Thy), which suggests that Gua and Cyt bases play a dominant role in DNA–SWCNT interactions. We also find that changes to non-WC nucleobase pairs and van der Waals attractive interactions between WC nucleobase pairs and SWCNT cause significant changes in the conformation of the DNA.

Control of Carbon Nanotube Electronic Properties by Lithium Cation Intercalation.

We show that the electronic properties of single walled carbon nanotubes (SWCNTs) can be tuned continuously from semiconducting to metallic by varying the location of ions inside the tubes. Focusing on the Li(+) cation inside the (26,0) zigzag semiconducting and (15,15) armchair metallic SWCNTs, we found that the Li(+)-SWCNT interaction is attractive. The interaction is stronger for the metallic SWCNT, indicating in particular that metallic tubes can enhance performance of lithium-ion batteries. The electronic properties of the metallic SWCNT are virtually independent of the presence of ions: Li(+) creates an energy level in the valence band slightly below the Fermi energy. On the contrary, the semiconducting SWCNT can be made metallic by placing ions close to the tube axis: Li(+) generates a new bottom of the conduction band. Letting the ions approach SWCNT walls recovers the semiconducting behavior.

Binding of human serum albumin to single-walled carbon nanotubes activated neutrophils to increase production of hypochlorous acid, the oxidant capable of degrading nanotubes.

Previous studies have shown that carboxylated single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWCNTs) can be catalytically biodegraded by hypochlorite (OCl-) and reactive radical intermediates of the human neutrophil enzyme myeloperoxidase (MPO). However, the importance of protein-SWCNT interactions in the biodegradation of SWCNTs was not stressed. Here, we used both experimental and theoretical approaches to investigate the interactions of SWCNTs with human serum albumin (HSA, one of the most abundant proteins in blood circulation) and found that the binding was involved in the electrostatic interactions of positively charged Arg residues of HSA with the carboxyls on the nanotubes, along with the π-π stacking interactions between SWCNTs and aromatic Tyr residues in HSA. Compared with SWCNTs, the binding of HSA could result in a reduced effect for OCl- (or the human MPO system)-induced SWCNTs degradation in vitro. However, the HSA-SWCNT interactions would enhance cellular uptake of nanotubes and stimulate MPO release and OCl- generation in neutrophils, thereby creating the conditions favorable for the degradation of the nanotubes. Upon zymosan stimulation, both SWCNTs and HSA-SWCNTs were significantly biodegraded in neutrophils, and the degree of biodegradation was more for HSA-SWCNTs under these relevant in vivo conditions. Our findings suggest that the binding of HSA may be an important determinant for MPO-mediated SWCNT biodegradation in human inflammatory cells and therefore shed light on the biomedical and biotechnological applications of safe carbon nanotubes by comprehensive preconsideration of their interactions with human serum proteins.

Selective Suspension of Single-Walled Carbon Nanotubes Using β-Sheet Polypeptides

Individual single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWNTs) were suspended in water using amphipathic β-sheet peptides of the general sequence Ac-(XKXE)2-NH2. By substituting natural and nonnatural amino acids of varying aromatic and hydrophobic character in the X position, the interactions between the peptide and the nanotube sidewall could be systematically varied. Surprisingly, enhancing the degree of favorable π–π and hydrophobic interactions, which strongly influence the self-assembly properties of these peptides, did not correlate with an improvement in nanotube dispersion efficiency. We found that substituents in the X-position of the peptides play a significant role in SWNT interaction and contributes to (n,m) structure specificity.

The Investigation of Sequence-dependent Interaction of Messenger RNA Binding to Carbon Nanotube

To investigate carbon nanotubes (CNTs) as gene delivery vehicles, it is essential to characterize their interactions with mRNA. Messenger RNA is a powerful tool for controlling the expression of genes in biomedical applications. In the present report, we study the interactions of single-walled CNT with three codons of mRNA(UGC,GAC,CAG) by using MM, AM1,HF and DFT (B3LYP) methods with STO-3G and 3-21G basis sets in gas phase. To estimate the stability of Nanotubes- mRNA complexes total energy of the systems were determined. The varieties of obtained energy data suggest the relation between the stability of complexes as this order: CAG > GAC > UGC. According to the ability of NMR in providing detailed information about the structure and chemical environment of molecules, this technique has been carried out by supposing gauge-included atomic orbital (GIAO). Considering on the calculated results of NMR chemical shift consist of σiso, σaniso, Δσ, δ and η that are very sensitive to small changes in molecular geometry and chemical environments and the results of energy reveal that the characteristic's variety and the stability of these complexes is depend on the specific mrna base and nucleotide sequences. We can predict that diseases with special mutation and gene sequences are the better aim for special kinds of treatment. Current observations will allow the implementation of new strategies in the development of CNT: mRNA complexes as effective gene therapy.

Studies on Inter and Intra Molecular Hydrogen Bonding and Morphologies of Single-walled Carbon Nanotubes/polyurethane-amide

Polyurethane (PU) with single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWCNTs) composites were prepared by an in-situ polymerization method, using 1,6-hexane diisocyanate and hydroxyl terminated polybutadiene in tetrahydrofuran. All the composites exhibit as tough films. The PU/SWCNTs blend interactions were studied between the poly(urethane amide), [PUA] functional group and SWCNTs. In the blend matrix, SWCNT interaction with carbonyl amide of PUA is stronger than amide nitrogen of PUA due to the proximity effect of carbonyl groups. This effect leads to block the inter and intra molecular hydrogen bonding within PU matrices. The interaction of SWCNTs with the PUA were examined and studied by ATR-FTIR, Raman spectra, and resistivity study. The “core-shell” tubular bundles morphologies of composites were observed by SEM. All the analyzed data revealed that the SWCNTs were uniformly distributed in PU matrix. These nanotube composite films could be used in the field of aircraft coatings.