Growth of carbon nanotubes and nanofibres in porous anodic alumina film Original Research Article

By acetylene pyrolysis at 650 and 550°C, carbon nanotubes were synthesized successfully in porous alumina templates anodized in sulfuric and/or oxalic acid solution. For templates anodized in oxalic acid followed by boiling in distilled water, thermal decomposition of acetylene at 650°C in the pores results in the formation of carbon nanofibres. For templates anodized in sulfuric acid, only carbon nanotubes were formed, even if boiling in water was adopted to process it. This indicates that the modifications of the catalytic effects in acetylene pyrolysis by boiling in water are different for these two types of templates. All the carbon nanotubes and nanofibres have similar lattice structures under HRTEM examination. No carbon nanotubes or nanofibres can be formed when the chemical vapour deposition temperature decreases to 500°C.