Effect of Metallic and Non-Metallic Additives on the Synthesis of Fullerenes in Thermal Plasma

Abstract

The effect of metallic (Fe, Cu, Co, Ni, Ti) and non-metallic additives (Si, B) on the formation of fullerenes from graphite powders was studied in radiofrequency (RF) thermal plasma. The main component of the synthesized fullerene mixtures was C60, but higher fullerenes (C70, C82, and C84) could be detected as well. Fe and Cu additives increased the fullerene content in the soot. In contrast, the fullerene formation decreased in the presence of Ti, Si, and B as compared to the synthesis without additives. However, Ti and B addition enhanced the formation of higher fullerenes. We provide experimental evidence that decreasing the reactor pressure results in a lower yield of fullerene production, in accordance with thermodynamic calculations and numerical simulations published earlier. In the presence of titanium, a significant quantity of TiC was also formed as a by-product. The fullerene mixture synthesized with boron additives showed higher stability during storage in ambient conditions as compared to other samples.

Analysis of Essential Features and Optimal Operational Parameters of an RF-ICP Torch for Waste Treatment Applications

“…One of the most significant advantages of ICTP is its ability to generate a clean, high-temperature environment free from contamination by electrode materials. Capitalizing on these benefits, ICTPs have found diverse applications, including waste disposal [28], thermal barrier coating production [29][30][31], plasma spray-physical vapor deposition technique [32], diamond film deposition [33,34], fullerene synthesis [35,36], fine powder spheroidization [37][38][39], nanopowder synthesis [40][41][42][43], nanotube production [44,45], catalyst synthesis [46], and astrophysical research [47]. Despite the successful utilization of ICTP torches in numerous material processes, certain limitations have also emerged.…”

Efficient Waste Management via Tuning Plasma Properties in Radio Frequency Inductively Coupled Plasma

“…One of the most significant advantages of ICTP is its ability to generate a clean, high-temperature environment free from contamination by electrode materials. Capitalizing on these benefits, ICTPs have found diverse applications, including waste disposal [24], thermal barrier coating production [25][26][27], diamond film deposition [28], fullerene synthesis [29,30], fine powder spheroidization [31][32][33], nanopowder synthesis [34][35][36][37], nanotube production [38,39], catalyst synthesis [40], and astrophysical research 3 [41]. Despite the successful utilization of ICTP torches in numerous material processes, certain limitations have also emerged.…”