In-situ synthesis of high-quality carbon nanotubes on Cu powder by constructing an Al2O3 barrier layer

The synthesis of high-quality carbon nanotubes (CNTs)-Cu composite powder by chemical vapor deposition remains a persistent challenge due to catalyst deactivation resulting from its diffusion into Cu powder at elevated temperatures. To overcome this obstacle, a novel approach involving pre-coating Cu powder with an Al2O3 barrier layer was proposed to facilitate the in-situ growth of CNTs. Experimental results demonstrated that synthesized CNTs exhibited a desirable combination of uniform distribution, high aspect ratio and tunable structures achieved by utilizing different carbon source precursors. Notably, single/double-walled CNTs (S/ DMCNTs) with exceptional structural integrity was achieved on Cu powder, which has not been reported previously. The Raman ID/IG ratio of present S/DMCNTs-Cu composite powder reached approximately 0.18, which was significantly superior compared to the relevant reported data.