SYNTHESIS AND FORMATION MECHANISM OF STRAIGHT CARBON MICROTUBES BY A SIMPLE IN SITU TEMPLATE APPROACH

Here we report a simple in situ template approach for the synthesis of uniformly-shaped straight carbon microtubes (SCMTs) under moderate conditions, in which zinc carbonate powder and glycol were used as starting materials. The morphology and microstructure of SCMTs were characterized by SEM, TEM, HRTEM, XRD and Raman spectrum. The length and diameter of SCMTs can be controlled by simply varying the concentration of zinc carbonate in glycol. Experimental results show that ZnO nanorods generated during the process act as an in situ template for SCMT formation. Owing to their large inner spacing, SCMTs may have potential applications in supporter materials for drugs, dyes, and catalysts, microreactors, and hydrogen or energy storage materials.