PHILADELPHIA (CBS) - To the human eye, carbon nanotubes look like piles of black sand. They're fifty thousand times smaller than the width of a human hair, one hundred times stronger than steel and one-sixth the weight. They're new to most of us, so why are they important?

Carbon nanotubes have amazing properties that can enable televisions to be 92% more energy efficient and solar cells to be paper thin and flexible, generating electricity from the sun, to be cheaper and more effective.

However, three reasons prohibit large scale development -- cost, time and impurities in the nanotube structure. Lev Davidson, a Temple University MBA student, teamed with chemistry professor Eric Borguet to tackle these problems -- attracting wide public attention and the grand prize in Temple's business plan competition.

This project exemplifies the power of partnerships between science and business, to develop nanotechnology -- including medical treatments and water filtration systems to improve our lives -- fueling the next wave of technological innovation.

Reported By Dr. Marciene Mattleman, KYW Newsradio