Theoretical Analysis of the Catalytic Chemical Vapor Deposition Synthesis of Carbon Nanotubes

Abstract

A theoretical analysis of the Chemical Vapor Deposition (CVD) process for synthesis of carbon nanotubes, in order to predict the spatial distributions of the concentration, velocity and temperature inside the reactor has been presented in this paper. The analysis is performed by solving the governing differential equations pertaining to the process which involves catalytic chemical vapor deposition (CCVD) with acetylene as the carbon source and iron oxide as the catalyst. The system of equations, namely the momentum, energy and mass transport equations have been solved using the COMSOL software. The predicted values of the carbon nanotube yield from the chemical kinetics model have been verified using experimental results. The analysis presented offers an effective tool in designing the CVD furnace and deciding on the operational parameters to be used, in the synthesis of carbon nanotubes using the Chemical Vapor Deposition method.