Continuous High-Yield Production of Vertically Aligned Carbon Nanotubes on 2D and 3D Substrates
Year: 2011
Type: article
Abstract: Vertically aligned carbon nanotubes (VACNTs) have certain advantages over bulk CNT powders and randomly oriented CNT mats for applications in flexible electronic devices, filtration membranes, biosensors and multifunctional aerospace materials. Here, a machine and a process to synthesize VACNTs in a continuous manner are presented showing uniform growth on 2D and 3D substrates, including alumina fibers, silicon wafer pieces, and stainless steel foils. Aligned multiwalled carbon nanotubes (MWNT) are synthesized at substrate feed rates of up to 6.8 cm/min, and the CNTs reach up to 60 μm in length depending on residence time in the reactor. In addition to the aligned morphology indicative of high yield growth, transmission electron microscopy and Raman spectroscopy reveal that the CNTs are of comparable quality to CNTs grown via a similar batch process. A significant reduction in time, reaction products, gases, and energy is demonstrated relative to batch processing, paving the way for industrial production of VACNTs.
Source: ACS Nano
DOI: 10.1021/nn2008645
Institutions: Massachusetts Institute of Technology, University of Michigan
Language: English
Subfield: Materials Chemistry
Field: Materials Science
Domain: Physical Sciences
Open Access status: green
OpenAlex ID: W2064969265