METHOD AND REACTOR FOR PRODUCING CARBON NANOTUBES

• Main Authors: PRYTZ, STEINAR, MONSEN, BODIL, RAVARY, BENJAMIN, WESTERMOEN, ANDREAS, KLEVELAND, KJERSTI, RAANESS, OLA, JENSEN, ROAR, BAKKEN, JON, ARNE
• Format: Patent
• Language: English; French; German
• Published: 23.04.2008
• Subjects: CHEMICAL OR PHYSICAL PROCESSES, e.g. CATALYSIS OR COLLOIDCHEMISTRY; CHEMISTRY; COMPOUNDS THEREOF; ELECTRIC TECHNIQUES NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR; ELECTRICITY; INORGANIC CHEMISTRY; MANUFACTURE OR TREATMENT OF NANOSTRUCTURES; MANUFACTURE OR TREATMENT THEREOF; MEASUREMENT OR ANALYSIS OF NANOSTRUCTURES; METALLURGY; NANOSTRUCTURES FORMED BY MANIPULATION OF INDIVIDUAL ATOMS,MOLECULES, OR LIMITED COLLECTIONS OF ATOMS OR MOLECULES ASDISCRETE UNITS; NANOTECHNOLOGY; NON-METALLIC ELEMENTS; PERFORMING OPERATIONS; PHYSICAL OR CHEMICAL PROCESSES OR APPARATUS IN GENERAL; PLASMA TECHNIQUE; PRODUCTION OF ACCELERATED ELECTRICALLY-CHARGED PARTICLES OR OFNEUTRONS; PRODUCTION OR ACCELERATION OF NEUTRAL MOLECULAR OR ATOMICBEAMS; SPECIFIC USES OR APPLICATIONS OF NANOSTRUCTURES; THEIR RELEVANT APPARATUS; TRANSPORTING

The present invention concerns a process for producing carbon nanotubes or other carbon nanostructures, e.g. cones. The process comprising evaporating/decomposing a carbon containing material in a voluminous thermal plasma generated by rotating an electric arc using an externally applied magnetic field, and condensing said evaporated/decomposed carbon containing material on surfaces or on particles in a gas flow. A reactor for performing the process is also described.