Polyacrylonitrile (PAN) is one of the materials most often used for carbonization. PAN nanofiber mats, created by electrospinning, are an especially interesting source to gain carbon nanofibers. A well-known problem in this process is fixing the PAN nanofiber mats during the stabilization process which is necessary to avoid contraction of the fibers, correlated with an undesired increase in the diameter and undesired bending. Fixing this issue typically results in breaks in the nanofiber mats if the tension is too high, or it is not strong enough to keep the fibers as straight as in the original state. This article suggests a novel method to overcome this problem by electrospinning on an aluminum substrate on which the nanofiber mat adheres rigidly, stabilizing the composite and carbonizing afterwards either with or without the aluminum substrate to gain either a pure carbon nanofiber mat or a metal/carbon composite.

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The use of carbon-based materials as catalyst supports for Fischer–Tropsch synthesis (FTS) is thoroughly reviewed. The main factors to consider when using a carbonaceous catalyst support for FTS are first discussed. Then, the most relevant and recent literature on the topic from the last 2 decades is reviewed, classifying the different examples according to the carbon structure and shape. Some aspects such as the carbon textural properties, carbon support modification (functionalization and doping), catalyst preparation methods, metal particle size and location, catalyst stability and reducibility, the use of promoters, and the catalyst performance for FTS are summarized and discussed. Finally, the main conclusions, advantages, limitations, and perspectives of using carbon catalyst supports for FTS are outlined.

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