Growth of carbon nanospheres through a building block assembly method at 300 °C Original Research Article

Carbon nanospheres (CNSs) with the diameters of 50–250 nm were synthesized through a one-step solvothermal method at about 300 °C. In this process, benzene and hexachloroethane (C2Cl6) served as carbon source for the CNSs. The results showed that the CNSs were composed of a mixture of graphitic nanocrystallites and amorphous carbon. It is believed that they formed through intermolecular Friedel–Crafts alkylation and dehydrogenation reactions in the presence of anhydrous aluminum chloride (AlCl3). The mechanism of carbonization and the effect of Al particles on the morphology of carbon products are discussed.