This review explores carbon nanotubes in all its faces. Explains their hollow architecture, with a nanometric inner cavity, which gives the CNT its extraordinary phyisical and chemical properties. It then goes to explain how these inner cavities can be used as a methodology for encapsulating of a wide range of materials, including inorganic and organic compounds, and the methodologies used to fill the CNTs.

There is a special attention given to all societal challenges applications of the CNTs: these include biomedicine, catalysis, energy storage, gas separation, filtration membranes, sensing technologies, and nanoelectronics.

Schematic representation illustrating how the chosen synthetic approach for encapsulating foreign materials within CNT’s cavities governs the final properties of the resulting hybrids. | The authors

Reference article

A Comprehensive Review on Filled Carbon Nanotubes: Synthesis, Properties and Applications
Stefania Sandoval, Gil Gonçalves, Jorge Pérez Barrio, Marianna V. Kharlamova, Gerard Tobías-Rossell
Chem. Rev. 2026, 126, 4, 2283–2390
DOI: 10.1021/acs.chemrev.5c00219