Nanophysics Opens New Horizons: Developing the First Metal-Free Electric Motor

Lebanon Today

In a world witnessing rapid developments in fields such as electric cars, drones, and spacecraft, electric motors stand out as a fundamental element. The biggest challenge remains reducing the weight of these motors, as lighter components mean lower energy consumption, higher battery efficiency, and increased operating range.

In this context, a research team at the Korea Institute of Science and Technology has achieved a significant breakthrough, having developed the first fully functional electric motor made entirely of carbon nanotubes. This motor does not contain any metal components, which are currently the primary material in electric motor coils due to their high electrical conductivity.

“By developing a new and unprecedented concept for high-quality carbon nanotube technology, we were able to maximize the electrical performance of nanotube coils, allowing them to be used in electric motors without the need for heavy metal wires,” says researcher Seung Min Kim from the Korea Institute of Science and Technology.

He adds: “This development represents a qualitative leap towards re-imagining the design of electric motors, especially in light of the continuous rise in the prices of traditional metals such as copper and aluminum, in addition to the challenges associated with them, such as the difficulty of securing them, their heavy weight due to their high density, as well as their negative environmental impacts.”

The essence of this innovation lies in the use of carbon nanotubes, which are ultra-fine materials only one nanometer in diameter, consisting of a single layer of carbon atoms arranged in a hexagonal structure resembling a honeycomb.

These materials are characterized by unique properties; they are lighter than ordinary metals, possess exceptional electrical conductivity, and have mechanical strength many times stronger than steel despite their extreme lightness, in addition to high thermal properties. These features make them useful in many applications such as electronics, medicine, and energy.

The research team conducted experiments using coils made of carbon nanotubes instead of traditional metal coils, and found that its rotation speed can be controlled stably according to the input electrical voltage.

Experiments have shown that the new motor responds flexibly and accurately to electrical voltage without the need for any metal elements, representing a technical advancement in this field.

According to the study published in the journal “Advanced Composites and Hybrid Materials,” this proves that the basic operation of the motor, which converts electrical energy into mechanical rotational force, can be achieved without the need to use any metal elements.

This innovation reflects a new trend towards improving the efficiency of electric motors, especially in light of the increasing need for lightweight and energy-saving materials that support modern mobility systems and contribute to reducing carbon emissions.

Carbon nanotubes have long attracted attention for their distinct properties, but their industrial use has remained limited due to some obstacles, such as the remnants of metals used as catalysts during production, which weaken their electrical properties.

To overcome this obstacle, the research team invented a specialized technique known as lyotropic liquid crystal-assisted surface treatment (“LAST”), which is a fourth state of matter that allows the removal of metal impurities without affecting the nanoscale structure of the wires.

This technology relies on the use of the liquid crystal state, which are materials that behave like liquids under certain conditions but exhibit a regular molecular arrangement similar to crystals, and are used here to guide the reaction precisely at the nanoscale level.

As a result, the rate of metal contamination has been significantly reduced, an achievement that exceeds the efficiency of traditional purification methods. The purified nanotube wires showed a marked improvement in electrical conductivity, achieving conductivity that can be raised to a level applicable in actual electric motors without the need for copper coils.

In performance tests, the rotational speed of the carbon nanotube motor was slightly lower than that of a copper motor, but the weight difference was significant, as the weight of the nanotube wires was about 5 times lighter than copper wires.

To prove the capabilities of the new motor, the researchers built a miniature model of a toy car powered by the nanotube motor and tested it on real asphalt. The car successfully covered a distance of 10 meters in 25 seconds, indicating that the motor is capable of running the car at a speed of more than half a meter per second, with electrical performance close to traditional copper motors.

The carbon nanotube motor showed a 133% improvement in electrical conductivity and is 80% lighter than traditional designs, paving the way for its efficient use inside lightweight motors.

Despite its superiority over its copper motor competitor, the efficiency-to-weight ratio highlights the potential of carbon nanotube motors in future applications while reducing weight and carbon emissions.

“This result highlights the promising potential of carbon nanotubes in developing a new generation of electric motors that are characterized by light weight, efficient performance, and energy consumption compared to traditional technologies, which may lead to radical changes in the future,” according to the researcher.

He adds: “In addition to opening new horizons for innovative technologies in the electric motor industry, this innovation can support the expansion of the use of advanced nanomaterials in vital areas such as transportation, energy systems, and space applications.”

He concludes: “Based on the development of carbon nanotube materials, we intend to lead efforts to localize these advanced materials and expand their use, with the aim of promoting the adoption of their components on a large scale in future high-performance systems, such as conductive materials for batteries, semiconductor membranes, and robot cables.”