nanotube fiber and a cellulose sheath extending co axially along at least a first portion of a length of the carbon nanotube fiber another aspect of the invention provides a method of forming a sheathed carbon nanotube fiber the method comprising co electrospinning a carbon nanotube fiber gel core within a cellulose solution sheath application_number US 201113157758 A description embodiments of the present invention provide co axial core sheath nanofibers with multi wall carbon nanotubes mwnts cores and cellulose sheathes in some embodiments such nanofibers may be produced using dry jet wet electrospinning using room temperature ionic liquid solvents according to one illustrative embodiment of the invention mwnts are mixed with an ionic liquid such as 1 ethyl 3 methylimidazolium acetate other ionic liquids include but are not limited to 1 butyl 3 methylimidazolium chloride and 1 allyl 3 methylimidazolium chloride such mixing may be by mortar and pestle for example to form a homogenous gel this core gel typically comprises between about 1 and about 10 mwnts by weight although lesser or greater mwnt concentrations may be used a sheath solution is prepared by dissolving cellulose in an ionic liquid such as 1 ethyl 3 methylimidazolium acetate to a cellulose concentration of about 1 5 by weight although concentrations between about 1 and about 5 by weight may also be used the sheath solution may be mixed using a magnetic stirrer or similar device to form a homogeneous solution solution formation may be aided by heating to about 80 u00b0 c the core gel and sheath solution are then co electrospun using a co axial spinneret such as those available from mecc fukuoka japan fig1 shows such a co axial spinneret 100 having an inner core needle 10 and an outer sheath needle 20 the.