Control growth of carbon nanofibers on Ni/activated carbon in a fluidized bed reactor

An effectual new approach to prepare a hybrid composite of vapor-grown carbon nanofibers (VGCNFs)/activated carbon (AC) with high specific surface area is demonstrated. The fibers are synthesized at 1073 K by a chemical vapor deposition method with natural gas (CH4) as the carbon source, hydrogen as carrier gas and Ni nanoparticles loaded on AC as the catalyst. The materials synthesized are characterized using a combination of N2 adsorption–desorption isotherm, Raman spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction, scanning and transmission electron microscopy. This shows that after 180 min reaction, the Brunauer, Emmett and Teller (BET) surface area of VGCNF/AC reaches 1113 m2/g, and VGCNFs with diameters ranging between 40 and 120 nm can develop on the surface of the AC. Platelet graphite nanofibers and contorted nanofibers are found and their microstructures depend on the characteristics of the catalyst used.