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Growth mechanism of carbon nanotubes produced by pyrolysis of a composite film of poly (vinyl alcohol) and fly ash

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Abstract

We produced carbon nanotubes (CNTs) by pyrolysis of a composite film of poly (vinyl alcohol) (PVA) with fly ash (FA) at 500°C for 10 min under nitrogen. The composite films were prepared by a suspension of PVA and FA in deionized water and cast onto glass petri dishes. The morphologies of the CNTs were observed in the images of scanning and transmission electron microscopy, showing different types of structures, e.g. whiskers, branches, ropes and graphene sheets. The widths of the CNTs measured varied in the range 18–80 nm. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy analysis showed five types of carbon binding peaks, C–C/C–H (∼77%), C–O–H (∼9%), –C–O–C (∼5%), C=O (∼5%) and –O–C=O (∼3%). From an image of a broken CNT, a mechanism was proposed for the formation of CNTs. The CNTs grown on FA surfaces have potential for the fabrication of high-strength composite materials with polymer and metal.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Centre for Sustainable Materials Research and Technology, School of Materials Science and Engineering, The University of New South Wales, Sydney, NSW, 2052, Australia

    Dilip C. D. Nath & Veena Sahajwalla

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  1. Dilip C. D. Nath
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  2. Veena Sahajwalla
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Correspondence to Dilip C. D. Nath.

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Nath, D.C.D., Sahajwalla, V. Growth mechanism of carbon nanotubes produced by pyrolysis of a composite film of poly (vinyl alcohol) and fly ash. Appl. Phys. A 104, 539–544 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00339-011-6405-1

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00339-011-6405-1

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