Effect of nanosilicon carbide on the carbonisation process of coal tar pitch

•The effect of silicon carbide (SiC) nanopowder on the process of coal tar pitch thermal decomposition during heat treatment to a temperature of 2000 °C is studied.•The XRD of the coal tar pitch blended with SiC and heated up to 2000 °C revealed a catalytic effect of the SiC nanoparticles.•The structure of the carbon residue heated at 2000 °C in the presence of small quantity of SiC shows higher crystallinity and smaller values of d0 0 2 when compared to pure carbon.

The study describes the effect of silicon carbide (SiC) nanopowder on the process of coal tar pitch thermal decomposition during heat treatment to a temperature of 2000 °C. The influence of nanosized SiC powder on the pyrolysis mechanism of carbonisation product yield, as well as structural and microstructural parameters of carbon obtained via carbonisation and further heating up to 2000 °C was studied. The results show that the incorporation of a suitable amount of ceramic nanopowder into the liquid coal tar pitch results in a decrease in the crystallite sizes of carbon residue, while further heating up to 2000 °C gives rise to two carbon phases, differing in crystallinity and interplanar distance between graphene layers. The SiC addition enhances the formation of well-ordered graphite domains in comparison with those present within a pure carbon matrix.