Influence of the shape and size of catalyst on the morphology of carbon sub-microfibers

The investigation of the relation of catalyst particles with resultant carbon deposits has been carried out. In this paper, the influences of catalyst particles on the morphology of carbon fibers are studied. Carbon fibers have been synthesized by the decomposition of methanol/ethanol over copper substrate via catalytic combustion technique and chemical vapor deposition method. The structural characteristics of the carbon product were assessed from the scanning electron microscopy. In situ scanning electron microscopy showed that the size and the shape of the catalyst particles can influence the morphology of the resultant carbon fibers.