Synthesis and purification of single-walled carbon nanotubes in the cottonlike soot

摘要

The cottonlike soot with single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWNTs) is synthesized in large quantity under an improved arc discharge condition. It is found that the soot obtained under this condition contains much fewer multi-shell graphite particles compared to the clothlike soot produced earlier by our group and is much easier to be purified. High-purity SWNTs were obtained by combining oxidation in air and microwave-assisted acid treatment without multi-step filtration. SWNT purity was evaluated by SEM, TEM, thermogravimetric analysis, and Raman spectroscopy. Furthermore, the formation mechanism of the cottonlike soot is also discussed. (C) 2004 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.