Feasible synthesis of carbon nanostructures by underwater electric arc discharge method

With the advancement in nanoscience and technology, a remarkable transformation is being observed in the field of materials science. Among all nanoparticles, carbon nanostructures (CNS) are the most widely used for industrial applications. Considerable efforts have been focused on developing and refining CNS synthesis methods and optimizing their quality-to-cost ratio. The most common methods for synthesizing carbon nanostructures in practice are chemical vapor deposition (CVD), laser ablation, and arc discharge methods. Submerged arc discharge in water (SADW) is one of the most effective methods for synthesizing high-quality carbon nanostructures, in which an electric arc is created between two graphite rods spaced at a certain distance from each other, and a deposit containing nanotubes and nanostructures is formed on the cathode. This method is cost-effective and the time required for CNS synthesis is much less compared to other methods. Although the synthesis of nanostructures using SADW method seems simple, achieving high efficiency while maintaining good structure is challenging due to the control of experimental conditions such as electrode diameter, gap distance for creating an electric arc, cathode shape, voltage, temperature, power source, current, and the type of environment in which the electrodes are located. In this study, the underwater electric arc method was used to evaluate the feasibility of synthesizing carbon nanostructures. Graphite electrodes with different compositions were used in aqueous solution with a DC voltage of about ۰-۶۰ V and a current of about ۰-۱۰ A. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) was used to examine the morphology of the resulting nanostructures in the floating, suspended and precipitated phases. Preliminary results showed that this very simple method, without the need for complex chemical solvents and conditions, can create various carbon nanostructures such as nanoparticles, nanoflowers, and nanoplates. Optimization and investigation of the effect of all parameters in this experiment are also underway.

کلیدواژه ها:

Synthesis of carbon nanostructures ، underwater arc discharge ، carbon electrode ، morphology of nanostructures