Copper and nickel supported FSM-16 molecular sieves for carbon nanotube production

FSM-16, Cu-FSM-16 and Ni-FSM-16 type folded sheet mesoporous materials has been synthesized by using kanemite and hexadecyltrimethylammonium bromide as a template. 1, 5, 10 wt % Cu and Ni were loaded by simple impregnation method. The X-ray diffraction and N2 sorption characteristics show that the resultant materials has uniform pore structure with hexagonal well ordered arrangement. BET surface area, pore volume nd pore diameters were decreased as the metal loading increased. Carbon nanotubes (CNTs) have been synthesized within the metal trapped channels of the FSM-16 via chemical vapor deposition using acetylene as the hydrocarbon source. The resultant nanotubes were compared under similar reaction conditions and they were characterized by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), Raman Spectroscopy, AFM and TGA.