The Rice Space Elevator

During a recent extended family dinner, I mentioned to one of my family's Rice alums that Rice has many patents related to carbon nanostructures (such as those in the post about fullerenes), which led to a fun discussion. 

Apparently, during his day, it was popular for research proposals concerning carbon nanotubes--whether for grants, to advisors or departments--to sometimes mention their potential future use in building a space elevator.

Which led me to wonder if any Rice patents or patent applications included space elevators. 

To my disappointment, not a one outright admits to that aspiration.

However, there were dozens of carbon nanotube-related patents that do include "spacecraft" and "satellites" among their useful applications, and what is a space elevator if not a very specific type of satellite or spacecraft?

Most notable among them are:

1. Application 10/033,228: "Method for producing self-assembled objects comprising single-wall carbon nanotubes and compositions thereof". It led to a total of 23 patents between 2004 and 2011, all of which mention applications in space as seen below.

   

   Page 23 of Application 10/033,228
   

   
   
2. US Patent 7,407,640: "Functionalized carbon nanotube-polymer composites and interactions with radiation". Not only was the research for it funded in part by NASA, it mentions its use in various spacecraft and space research in more than one section.
3. US Patent 7,262,266: "Copolymerization of polybenzazoles and other aromatic polymers with carbon nanotubes". This 2007 patent specifically states that the nanotube block coppolymers are ideal for space-faring vehicles; excerpt below.

   

   Page 5 of US 7,262,266
   

After quite a few highly entertaining searches, I found that it was much more likely for Rice doctorate candidates in a thesis dissertation, or faculty to co-author an article, that mentions space elevators. A quick search of our Digital Scholarship Archive returned three such dissertations and the one article. All four use space elevators much like what was explained to me: that carbon nanotubes are the most viable known material with space elevator material.

The faculty article references space elevators in the first introductory paragraph, explaining that due to the unique characteristics of carbon nanotube fibers, they "have received considerable interest for advanced applications ranging from military equipment, sensors, actuators, and energy storage devices to the space elevator" (emphasis added). (Lee, Dongju, Kim, Seo Gyun, Hong, Seungki, et al.. "Ultrahigh strength, modulus, and conductivity of graphitic fibers by macromolecular coalescence." Science Advances, 8, no. 16 (2022) AAAS: https://doi.org/10.1126/sciadv.abn0939.)

Each dissertation refers to space elevators in a similar context. Here are the citations so you can read those parts if desired:

1. Page 6 of Zhou, Zhou. "Energy Storage Capacity and Superconductivity of Nanosized Titanium Diboride, and Multifunctionality of Carbon-based Nanostructures: Development of Nano-engineered Solutions." (2019) Diss., Rice University. 
2. Page 5 of Cox, Paris. "Water Drop Tribology of Graphene and Polymer Nanocomposites." (2013) Diss., Rice University.
3. Pages 9 and 48, among several other oblique mentions via aerospace, of Pint, Cary L.. "Synthesis, transfer printing, electrical and optical properties, and applications of materials composed of self-assembled, aligned single-walled carbon nanotubes." (2010) Diss., Rice University.

In the end, I hate to disappoint Rice's enthusiasts, but they aren't likely to win the space elevator race. Not only have some claimed to be working on viable designs already, but numerous patents for the space elevator concepts have been issued.

My favorite is from Lockheed Martin: US 6,491,258, "Space Elevator".