Macroscopic Synthesis of Vertically Aligned Carbon Nanotubes Using Floating Catalyst Chemical Vapor Deposition Method

Abstract

In this paper, we report an efficient process to grow well-aligned carbon nanotube (CNT) arrays with a good area distribution density (about 5.6 ×107 CNT/mm2). Vertically aligned carbon nanotubes (VA-CNTs) have been produced by controlling flow rate, temperature and catalyst nanoparticles using a floating catalyst chemical vapor deposition (FC-CVD) technique. They were synthesized on quartz substrates at 800 °C from toluene as a carbon source. VA-CNT samples were characterized by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), Raman spectroscopy and their surface area and pore size were determined by nitrogen adsorption analysis. The synthesized CNTs have a length of 500 µm and diameters ranging from 120±40 nm. The CNT filaments form a strength structure and exhibit a good vertical alignment. The remarkable properties of CNTs make them attractive for separation applications, especially for water and wastewater treatment.