FACTORS AFFECTING YIELD OF CARBON OF DIFFERENT TYPES OBTAINED BY PYROLYSIS OF HYDROCARBONS

Pyrolysis of methane at 1100°C and 1 see contact time in a static-bed flow reactor packed with granules of high-temperature coke resulted in the formation of dense pyrolytic carbon, firmly attached to the coke surface and reactor wall, together with fine dispersed carbon which could be separated by screening. As the surface area of the coke diminished during a run the formation of surface carbon generally decreased while the yield of the fine carbon increased. Among other factors the temperature of pyrolysis (between 900-1200°C), homogeneous catalysis (by iodine and HBr)and the effect of raw material composition (hydrocarbons with mol. wt. between 16 and 316) have been investigated. The surface carbon obtained from methane was very pure (ash content 0·35 per cent) with a high density (2·1 g/cm3) and showed high resistance to oxidation with nitric acid. © 1969.