Design and Implementation of Montmorillonite Clay-Based Catalyst for Carbon Nanotube Synthesizing

Abstract

In this study, a catalyst based on Montmorillonite clay was implemented for carbon nanotubes (CNTs) synthesizing. The kaolinite clay was used as a supporting material for iron-cobalt bimetallic catalytic nanoparticles. The CNTs have been synthesized by using atmospheric chemical vapor deposition (APCVD). To assess the quality of preparation both the catalyst and CNTs have been characterized by different techniques. The chemical bonding and interactions were verified by FT-IR. The general overview of microstructure was examined using SEM, while, the detailed structure and morphology were examined by HR-TEM, in addition to thermal analysis (DTA); surface area (BET); X-ray fluorescence (XRF), Raman spectroscopy, and XRD analysis. The results revealed that; Fe2O3 and Co3O4 NPs were uniformly assembled on the clay nanoplatelets. The specific BET surface area of the clay and catalyst was determined to be 46.12 and 57.06 m2/g respectively. Also, from XRD, the peaks at 26° and 42.7° confirm the presence of CNTs. The FTIR absorption bands, D, G, and G\ bands from the Raman spectrum confirm the hexagonal structure of the CNTs. The obtained results prove the high quality of CNTs preparation.