2022/07/26 by Alberto Ambrosetti, Ambrosetti, Alberto, Giorgio Palermo +3
Engineering · Materials Science · Physics and Astronomy · #Carbon Nanotubes in Composites #FOS: Physical sciences #Materials Science (cond-mat.mtrl-sci) #Mechanical and Optical Resonators #Mesoscale and Nanoscale Physics (cond-mat.mes-hall) #Nanopore and Nanochannel Transport Studies
paper · pdf · doi:10.48550/arxiv.2207.12865
openalex publication_date 2022/07/26 · openalex created_date 2025/10/10 · openalex updated_date 2026/07/28
Water-flow in carbon nanotubes (CNT's) starkly contradicts classical fluid mechanics, with permeabilities that can exceed no-slip Haagen-Poiseuille predictions by two to five orders of magnitude. Semi-classical molecular dynamics accounts for enhanced flow-rates, that are attributed to curvature-dependent lattice mismatch. However, the steeper permeability-enhancement observed experimentally at ∼nm-size radii remains poorly understood, and suggests emergence of puzzling non-classical mechanisms. Here we address water-CNT friction from a quantum-mechanical perspective, in terms of water-energy loss upon phonon excitation. We find that combined weak water-phonon coupling and selection rules hinder water-CNT scattering, providing effective protection to water superflow, whereas comparison with a semiclassical theory evidences a friction increase that can exceed the quantum-mechanical prediction by more than two orders of magnitude. Quasi-frictionless flow up to sub-nm CNT's opens new pathways towards minimally-invasive trans-membrane cellular injections, single-water fluidics and efficient water filtration.