  Aggregation of carbon nanotubes dispersed in nematic liquid crystalline
medium is discussed. A model is proposed, which assumes that the aggregates
consist of a "skeleton" formed by stochastically arranged nanotubes and a
"shell" ("coat") of incorporated and adjacent nematic molecules. The aggregates
of this type can be considered as large quasi-macroscopic particles in the
nematic matrix. The resulting composite system represents a new type of complex
molecular liquids involving self-organization of particles in anisotropic
medium. Many essential features and implications of the theoretical model
(e.g., effects of concentration of the nanotubes, their aspect ratio and
orientational order parameter on the size and fractal dimensionality of the
aggregates formed, as well as on the rate of aggregation) are in good agreement
with experimental data obtained by various physical methods.
