Multiple-wall carbon nanotubes obtained with mesoporous material decorated with ceria-zirconia

• Published in: Materials letters 2021-01, Vol.283, p.128900, Article 128900
• Main Authors: Rodriguez, Miguel A., Anunziata, Oscar A., Beltramone, Andrea R., Martínez, María L.
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Carbon; Carbon nanotubes; Catalyst; Catalysts; Ce-Zr-SBA-15; Cerium oxides; Characterization; Chemical synthesis; Chemical vapor deposition; Crystallites; CVD; Decomposition; Electron microscopy; Ethanol; Materials science; Microscopy; Multi wall carbon nanotubes; Precipitates; Silicon dioxide; Synthesis; Zirconium dioxide; Zirconium oxides
• ISSN: 0167-577X; 1873-4979
• DOI: 10.1016/j.matlet.2020.128900

[Display omitted] •New procedure for the preparation of multi-walled carbon nanotubes.•Orderly mesoporous silica type SBA-15 modified with Ceria and Zirconia as key to the process.•Zr is found as +4 and Ce shows different occupations of level 3d in its final state on the catalyst.•Efficient chemical vapor deposition of ethanol on mesoporous catalyst Ce-Zr-SBA-15.•The prepared multi-walled carbon nanotubes range from 30 to 35 nm in diameter. In this work, Ceria-Zirconia on ordered Santa Barbara mesoporous silica (Ce-Zr-SBA-15), has been used directly as a catalyst for the synthesis of carbon nanotubes (CNTs) through Chemical Vapor Deposition (CVD). In addition to cerium oxide, it contains zirconium oxide nano crystallites, which act as catalysts for carbon nanostructures. The catalytic performance of this material was evaluated for the decomposition of ethanol at 900 °C, with N2 flow. The carbon decomposed from absolute ethanol diffuses through the surface of the nanostructured catalytic material and precipitates in the form of MWCNT structures, which could be identified by X-ray diffraction (XRD), Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) and Transmission Electron Microscopy (TEM), showing average diameters of 30–35 nm.