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US 12,492,460 B2Granted
Apparatuses and methods for producing covetic materials using microwave reactors
AssigneeLyten, Inc.
InventorsMichael W. Stowell, Bruce Lanning, Peter Todd Williams, Daniel Cook
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Abstract
Apparatuses and methods for producing covetic materials by exciting a hydrocarbon gas with pulse microwaves to form hydrocarbon radicals in a hot first region of a microwave reactor. Graphene nanoplatelets are formed by the nucleation, growth and assembly of the hydrocarbon radicals, and contact a metal melt introduced downstream of the hot region to produce a mixture of molten metal and graphene nanoplatelets which assemble in-flight to form covetic materials. Graphene planes are infused in the metal matrix to achieve carbon loadings of at least 60%.
Claims20
A reactor including:
- an energy source configured to provide a microwave energy to the reactor;
- a first inlet through which a hydrocarbon gas flows into the reactor;
- an inner tube disposed in fluid communication with the first inlet and configured to dissociate the hydrocarbon gas into a plasma based on the microwave energy, the plasma including carbon and carbon radicals;
- an annular region surrounding the inner tube and bounded by a reactor wall;
- a second inlet disposed downstream of the first inlet and coupled to the annular region, the second inlet configured to receive metal particles entrained in a carrier gas;
- an inductive heater disposed in thermal communication with the reactor and configured to melt the metal particles;
- and
- an outlet configured to produce carbon-metal composites based at least in part on the melted metal particles and the plasma.
5 more elements
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.