Remarkable hexagonal carbon tubes transformed from zinc tetrapyridylporphine

Herein, a simple template-free method to the preparation of hexagonal carbon microtubes by pyrolysis of zinc tetrapyridylporphine (ZnTPyP) was reported. With cetyltrimethyl ammonium bromide as the auxiliary agent, ZnTPyP molecules assemble into hexagonal microtubes. Corresponding ZnTPyP microtubes and microrods can be selectively fabricated by changing the concentration of tetrapyridylporphine (TPyP) and zinc ions. Through the pyrolysis of ZnTPyP precursors, remarkable carbon microtubes with hexagonal cross-section are prepared. The formation of carbon microtubes are evidenced by X-ray diffraction, Raman spectroscopy, and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy.