Mechanochemical formation of novel catalyst for preparing carbon nanotubes: nanocrystalline yttrium aluminum iron perovskite

Abstract

The first mechanochemical synthesis of nanosized YAl 1− x Fe x O 3 ( x=0 to 1) perovskite powders is reported. Continuous ball-milling of the yttria, aluminum hydroxide and iron oxide powders over 24 h led to the formation of nanocrystals with a size of nearly 20 nm. It has been found that the material exhibits a catalytic property for preparing carbon nanotubes.