Growth of nanofilaments on carbon-based materials from microwave-assisted decomposition of CH4

The aim of this work was to study the growth of nanofilaments on two carbon-based materials (i.e. an activated carbon and carbon fibres) from microwave-assisted decomposition of CH4. It was found that the nature of grown nanofilaments differed depending on the carbon support, probably due to the presence of diverse metals which catalyze the nanofilaments growth. Besides, it was also studied the influence of the composition of the in-flow gases on the growth of nanofilaments. Thus, tests with pure CH4 and different CH4/N2 mixtures were carried out, the yield in nanofilaments being higher when mixtures were fed in. No nanofilaments were found after analogous tests carried out under conventional heating, therefore it can be stated that microwave heating is a promising technology for growing nanofilaments.