Output details
12 - Aeronautical, Mechanical, Chemical and Manufacturing Engineering
Queen's University Belfast
Catalyst distribution and carbon nanotube morphology in multilayer forests by mixed CVD processes
Substrate-based growth of carbon nanotubes (CNTs) uses two approaches – Catalyst Co-Injection (CCI) and Catalyst Pre-Deposition (CPD) – to produce very different morphologies. This paper was the first to describe a combined process, resulting in mixed multilayer forests of fibre. Critically, it demonstrated that one form of CNT is transparent to iron catalyst vapour, while the other form adsorbs it very strongly. As the implications of this finding for issues such as novel catalysts, toxicology and future synthesis strategies are understood and further explored, it is anticipated to have a substantial impact in these areas.