(Digital Presentation) Synthesis of Carbon Materials on Aluminum Foil from a Vapor-Gas Environment

Abstract

Due to its excellent electrical conductive properties and large specific surface area, one of the allotropic modifications of carbon, carbon nanotubes (CNTs), grown on a metal substrate, have great potential for use in supercapacitor electrodes. After all, growing layers of nanotubes directly on the surface of electrodes. can make it possible to achieve the best adhesion and electrical contact of CNTs with the current collector [1]. The large surface area and exceptional electronic conductivity of CNTs make them prime candidates for high-performance and high-speed electrochemical applications [2].The aim of the work was to investigate the effect of synthesis conditions on the structure and properties of a carbon layer grown on the surface of aluminum foil.We used technical aluminum foil with a thickness of 16 microns. Aluminum foil was previously degreased with acetone, kept in an aqueous 1 M NaOH solution for 3 minutes and 30 minutes in a 20% aqueous solution of nickel nitrate at 90 °C. The synthesis of carbon materials on the surface of aluminum foil was carried out by pyrolysis of ethanol vapor in argon at 550 and 600 °C.Analysis of SEM picture (fig. a) and Raman spectrum (dig. b) allows to conclude that the synthesized carbon materials are nanotubes or nanofibers.It has been established that pre-treatment of aluminum foil with acetone does not affect the properties and uniformity of distribution of the carbon layer. On aluminum foil, without pretreatment and kept in acetone, after the synthesis of carbon materials from the vapor-gas phase, initial sections of aluminum foil without a carbon layer are observed. Preliminary exposure of aluminum foil in an alkali solution contributed to the uniform distribution of the synthesized carbon; the entire foil was evenly covered with carbon.When pyrolysis of ethanol vapor is carried out in argon at 550 °C, the carbon layer is heterogeneous (fig. c) and volumetric growths are observed on the foil. When synthesizing carbon materials at 600°C, the carbon layer is dense without bulky formations (fig. d).This work was performed as part of the Ministry of Science and Higher Education of the Russian Federation[Government Order Theme No. 121111900148-3]. References Redkin, A. N., Mitina, A. A., & Yakimov, E. E. (2021). Simple technique of multiwalled carbon nanotubes growth on aluminum foil for supercapacitors. Materials Science and Engineering: B, 272, 115342. DOI:10.1016/j.mseb.2021.115342;Moyer-Vanderburgh, K., Ma M. C., Park, S.J., Jue, N.L., Buchsbaum, S.F., Wu K.J., Wood, M., Ye, J. Fornasiero, F., Growth and Performance of High-Quality SWCNT Forests on Inconel Foils as Lithium-Ion Battery Anodes: ACS Appl. Mater. Interfaces 2022, 14, 49, 54981–54991. DOI: 10.1021/acsami.2c18396 Figure 1