Growth of carbon nanoropes on Y2O3 nanoparticles in a tube furnace

INOR 631

Bing Guo, bguo@tamu.edu, Department of Mechanical Engineering, Texas A&M University, 3123 TAMU, College Station, TX 77843
Synthesis of carbon nanostructures in a furnace is amenable to scale-up and has potentially high production rate. There has been active research on the role of the catalyst in forming various carbon nanostructures. In this study we synthesized carbon nanostructures on Y2O3 nanoparticles coated on a stainless steel substrate in a tube furnace, using a gas mixture of C2H4, H2 and N2. The carbon nanostructure was analyzed by transmission electron microscopy. Carbon nanoropes grew from the surface of the Y2O3 nanoparticles, with diameters similar to the Y2O3 nanoparticles (200-300nm) and lengths of several micrometers. The factors that affect the growth of carbon nanoropes are discussed.