Carbon Nanotube Production using MCM-41 Type Catalytic Materials synthesized by Microwave Radiation

MCM-41 type catalytic materials with their hexagonal arrangement of one-dimensional pores and large surface areas (greater than 1000 m2 g−1) attracted major attention of catalysis researchers in recent years. Because of the unique structural features of the MCM-41, it is possible to produce narrow diameter distribution SWNTs on this type of catalytic materials. On the other hand carbon nanostructures take the interest of many researchers all over the world because of their interesting structural, electronic and mechanical properties. Thus, this narrow size distribution is very important for CNT production since most electronic applications of CNTs require alignment, homogeneity in diameter, length, and electronic properties. In this study, copper, nickel and cobalt incorporated MCM-41 catalysts were synthesized by microwave-induced heating, which is a promising method due to several advantageous over conventional hydrothermal method. Due to the more uniform heating throughout the reaction vessel, the microwave-induced heating results in more homogeneous nucleation and shorter crystallization times significantly compared to the hydrothermal method. In this study we achieved to synthesize the mesoporous catalytic materials by microwave-induced heating and reduce the synthesis time from days to hours. The copper, nickel, and cobalt incorporated MCM-41 type catalytic materials synthesized by microwave radiation were characterized by XRD, N2 physisorption, SEM, and EDS. These catalysts are planned used in the CVD process for CNT formation by using acetylene as the hydrocarbon source at different temperatures. The difference in the morphology, and the structural properties of the CNTs obtained by this method are going to be compared by using SEM, XRD, 13C-NMR and TEM