Carbon Nanotube Catalyst Preconditioning
AssigneeChasm Advanced Materials, Inc.MA
InventorsRicardo A. Prada Silvy, David J. Arthur
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Abstract
A method for preconditioning a supported metal catalyst that is to be used for the continuous, semi-continuous or batch production of carbon nanotubes (CNT) in a reactor, before the catalyst is fed into the reaction chamber at high temperature. The method involves treating an amount of the catalyst in a gas flow at an elevated preconditioning temperature for a preconditioning time.
Claims30
A method for preconditioning a supported metal catalyst that is to be used for the continuous, semi-continuous or batch production of carbon nanotubes (CNT) in a reactor, before the catalyst is fed into the reaction chamber at high temperature, the method comprising:
- treating an amount of the catalyst in a gas flow at an elevated preconditioning temperature for a preconditioning time.
A preconditioned supported metal catalyst for use in the production of carbon nanotubes (CNT) in a reactor, comprising:
- a γAl2O3-based metal catalyst support, with nanocrystals of at least one transition metal on the support, wherein the transition metal comprises at least five weight percent of the supported metal catalyst.
A method of the continuous production of carbon nanotubes (CNT) in a rotary tube or fluidized bed reactor, comprising:
- continuously feeding into the reactor at a reaction temperature a preconditioned supported metal catalyst comprising nanocrystals of a transition metal on an alumina-based support that has been preconditioned by treating the catalyst in a gas flow at an elevated preconditioning temperature for a preconditioning time;
- at the same time continuously feeding into the reactor a reaction gas mixture comprising a source of carbon and hydrogen;
- maintaining the reactor at the reaction temperature;
- maintain the catalyst in the reactor for at least a reaction time, wherein CNT are grown on the transition metal sites;
- and then
- continuously withdrawing from the reactor the catalyst with CNT grown thereon after at least the reaction time in the reactor.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.