Bioinspired Cellular Single-Walled Carbon Nanotube Aerogels with Temperature-Invariant Elasticity and Fatigue Resistance for Potential Energy Dissipation

Elastic and fatigue-resistant materials with a wide service temperature range are extremely needed in the crash cushion, automobile safety, and personal protective equipment. By combining radial freeze casting with carbon welding, single-walled carbon nanotube aerogels (SWCNTAs) with cellular structures are fabricated from a facile, scalable sol-gel method. The prepared SWCNTAs show a negative Poisson's ratio and high energy loss efficiency under the uniaxial compressive strain. Furthermore, the SWCNTAs exhibit both outstanding fatigue resistance with negligible plastic deformation even after 105 compressive cycles and superior elasticity ranging from -100 to 300 ? in air, making the aerogels viable candidates for energy dissipation in extreme environments.