• Proceedings of the KIEE Conference
• /
• 2006.10a
• /
• pp.38-39
• /
• 2006

We present experimental results that regard the effects of catalyst preparation on the structural and field-emissive properties of CNTs. The CNTs used in this research have been synthesized using the inductively coupled plasma-chemical vapor deposition (ICP-CVD) method. Catalyst materials (such as Ni, Co, and Invar 426) are varied and deposited on buffer films by RF magnetron sputtering. Prior to growth of CNTs, $NH_3$ plasma etching has also been performed with varying plasma etching time and power. For all the CNTs grown, nanostructures and morphologies are analyzed using Raman spectroscopy and FESEM, in terms of buffer films, catalyst materials, and pre-treatment conditions. Furthermore, the field electron-emission of CNTs are measured and characterized in terms of the catalyst preparation environments. The CNTs grown on Nicatalyst layer would be more effectual for enhancing the growth rate and achieving the vertical-alignment of CNTs rather than other buffer materials from results of SEM study. The crystalline graphitic structure of CNTs is improved as the catalyst dot reaches a critical size. Also, the field-emission result shows that the CNTs using Ni catalyst would be more favorable for improving electron-emission capabilities of CNTs compared with other samples.

• Journal of Electrochemical Science and Technology
• /
• v.15 no.3
• /
• pp.321-344
• /
• 2024

Transition metal compounds (TMCs) are being researched as promising electrode materials for electrochemical energy storage devices (supercapacitors). Among TMCs, transition metal phosphates (TMPs) have good, layered structures owing to open framework and protonic exchange capability among different layers, good surface area due to engrossed porosity, rich active redox reaction sites owing to octahedral structure and variable valance metallic ions. Hence TMPs become more ideal for supercapacitor electrode materials compared to other TMCs. However, TMPs have got some issues like low conductivity, rate performance, stability, energy, and power densities. But these problems can be addressed by making their composites with carbonaceous materials, e.g., carbon nanotubes (CNTs), graphene oxide (GO), graphitic carbon (GC), etc. A few factors like high surface area, excellent electrical conductivity of carbon materials and variable valence metal ions in TMPs caused great enhancement in their electrochemical performance. This article tries to discuss and compare the published data, majorly in last decade, regarding the electrochemical energy storage potential of pristine unary, binary, and ternary TMPs and their hybrid composites with carbonaceous materials (CNTs, GOs/rGOs, GC, etc.). The electrochemical performance of the hybrids has been reported to be higher than the pristine counterparts. It is hoped that the current review will open a new gateway to study and explore the high performance TMPs based supercapacitor materials.

• Carbon letters
• /
• v.7 no.4
• /
• pp.277-281
• /
• 2006

In this study, in order to easily provide functional groups on the surface of carbon nanotubes, dual structural multiwalled carbon nanotubes which have crystalline graphite and turbostratic carbon wall were synthesized by modified vertical thermal decomposition method. Synthesized dual structural MWCNTs were characterized by FE-SEM, TGA, HR-TEM, Raman spectroscopy and BET specific surface area analyzer. The average innermost and outermost diameters of the synthesized nanotubes were around 45 and 75 nm, respectively. The large empty inner space and the presence of graphitic carbons on the surface may open potential applications for gas storage and collection of hazardous materials.

• Carbon letters
• /
• v.5 no.1
• /
• pp.27-33
• /
• 2004

Structural changes of high modulus carbon fiber by oxidation in carbon dioxide gas using SEM, TEM, and XRD have been observed. It was shown that the originally high modulus carbon fiber is composed of highly ordered graphitic crystalline area and non-crystalline area. It was observed that the La increases during the whole oxidation process. It was shown that the oxidation of high modulus carbon fiber initiates at the non-crystalline area and at the ends of fiber. The large pores developed in fiber by direction of fiber length at high temperature ($1,100^{\circ}C$), and the small pores developed on the fiber surface at low temperature ($900^{\circ}C$). In conclusion, it is found that the oxidation of the carbon fiber was progressed through the imperfection.

• Clean Technology
• /
• v.21 no.1
• /
• pp.62-67
• /
• 2015

We have developed a versatile method for the preparation of chemically linked graphene/multi-walled carbon nanotubes (MWNTs) hybrid materials via simple acid-catalyzed dehydration reaction between graphene oxide (GO) and amine-functionalized MWNTs (af-MWNTs). In this condition, ketone (-C=O) groups in GO and primary amine (-NH₂) moieties in af-MWNTs readily react to form imine (-C=N-) linkage. The chemical structures of graphene/MWNTs hybrid materials have been investigated using various microscopic and spectroscopic measurements. As a result of the synergetic effects of hybrid materials such as improved surface area and the superior structural restoration of graphitic networks, the hybrid materials demonstrate improved capacitance with excellent long-term stability. Furthermore, controlled experiments were conducted to optimize the weight ratio of graphene/MWNTs in hybrid materials. The highest capacitance of 132.4 F/g was obtained from the GM7.5 material, in which the weight ratio between graphene and MWNTs was adjusted to 7.5/1, in 1M KOH electrolyte at a scan rate of 100 mV/s.

• Composites Research
• /
• v.29 no.4
• /
• pp.132-137
• /
• 2016

Based on mussel-inspired polydopamine (PDA), a novel technique to fabricate carbon nanowire (CNW) arrays is presented for a possible use of porous carbon electrode in electrochemical energy storage applications. PDA can give more porosity and nitrogen-doping effect to carbon electrodes, since it has high graphitic carbon yield characteristic and rich amine functionalities. Using such outstanding properties, the applicability of PDA for electrochemical energy storage devices was investigated. To achieve this, the decoration of the CNW arrays on carbon fiber surface was performed to increase the surface area for storage of electrical charge and the chemical active sites. Here, zinc oxide (ZnO) nanowire (NW) arrays were hydrothermally grown on the carbon fiber surface and then, PDA was coated on ZnO NWs. Finally, high temperature annealing was performed to carbonize PDA coating layers. For higher energy density, manganese oxide ($MnO_x$) nanoparticles (NPs), were deposited on the carbonized PDA NW arrays. The enlarged surface area induced by carbon nanowire arrays led to a 4.7-fold enhancement in areal capacitance compared to that of bare carbon fibers. The capacitance of nanowire-decorated electrodes reached up to $105.7mF/cm^2$, which is 59 times higher than that of pristine carbon fibers.

• Proceedings of the Korean Vacuum Society Conference
• /
• 2012.02a
• /
• pp.267-267
• /
• 2012

$TiO_2$-Ni inverse catalysts were prepared using atomic layer deposition (ALD) process and catalytic $CO_2$ reforming of methane (CRM) reaction over catalysts (either bare Ni or $TiO_2$ coated-Ni particles) were performed using a continuous flow reactor at $800^{\circ}C$. $TiO_2$-Ni inverse catalyst showed higher catalytic reactivity at initial stage of CRM reactions at $800^{\circ}C$ comparing to bare Ni catalysts. Moreover, catalytic activity of $TiO_2$/Ni catalyst was kept high during 13 hrs of the CRM reactions at $800^{\circ}C$, whereas deactivation of bare Ni surface was started within 1hr under same conditions. The results of surface analysis using SEM, XPS, and Raman showed that deposition of graphitic carbon was effectively suppressed in a presence of $TiO_2$ nanoparticles on Ni surface, thereby improving catalytic reactivity and stability of $TiO_2$/Ni catalytic systems. We suggest that utilizing decoration effect of metal catalyst with oxide nanoaprticles is of great potential to develop metal-based catalysts with high stability and reactivity.

• The Transactions of the Korean Institute of Electrical Engineers C
• /
• v.49 no.6
• /
• pp.328-334
• /
• 2000

A lithium ion secondary battery using carbon as a negative electrode has been developed. Further improvements to increase the cell capacity are expected by modifying the structure of the carbonaceous material. There are hopes for the development of large capacity lithium ion secondary batteries with long cycle, high energy density, high power density, and high energy efficiency. In the present paper, needle cokes from petroleum were examined as an anode of lithium ion secondary battery. Petroleum cokes, MCL(Molten Caustic Leaching) treated in Korea Institute Energy Research, were carbonized at various temperatures of 0, 500, 700, $19700^{\circ}C$ at heating rate of $2^{\circ}C$/min for lh. The electrolyte was used lM liPF6 EC/DEC (1:1). The voltage range of charge & discharge was 0.0V(0.05V) ~ 2.0V. The treated petroleum coke at $700^{\circ}C$ had an initial capacity over 560mAh.g which beyond the theoretical maximum capacity, 372mAh/g for LiC6. This phenomena suggests that carbon materials with disordered structure had higher cell capacity than that the graphitic carbon materials.

• Korean Journal of Materials Research
• /
• v.29 no.11
• /
• pp.677-683
• /
• 2019

In this paper, nitrogen-doped reduced graphene oxide(rGO) is obtained by thermal annealing of nitrogen-containing compounds and graphene oxide (GO) manufactured by modified Hummers' method. We use melamine as a nitrogen-containing compound and treat GO thermally with melamine at over $800{\sim}1,000^{\circ}C$ and 1 ~ 3 hr under Ar atmosphere. The electrical conductivity of doped rGO is measured by 4-point probe method. As a result, nitrogen contents on rGO are found to be in the range of 2.5 to 12.5 at% depending on the doping conditions after thermal annealing. The main doping site on graphene oxide is changed from pyridinic-N and pyrrolinic N to the graphitic site as the heat treatment temperature increases. The electrical conductivity of doped rGO increases as the N doping content increases. As the thermal treatment time increases, the change of both total doping contents and doping sites is slight and the surface resistance is remarkably reduced, which is caused by healing effects of doped graphene oxide at high temperature.

• Proceedings of the Korean Vacuum Society Conference
• /
• 2012.02a
• /
• pp.556-556
• /
• 2012

Transition metal-based organometallic complexes have shown great talents as a catalyst in various reactions. Designing organic molecules and coordinating them to such active centers have been a promising route to control the catalytic natures. Metallocene, which has transition metal atoms sandwiched by aromatic rings, is one of the representative systems for organometallic catalysts. Group 4-based metallocene catalysts have been most commonly used for the production of polyolefins, which have great world-wide markets in the real life. Graphenes and carbon nanotubes (CNTs) were composed of extended $sp^2$ carbon networks, showing high electron mobility as well as have extremely large steric bulkiness relative to metal centers. We were inspired by these characteristics of such carbon-based nano-materials and assumed that they could intimately interact with active centers of metallocene catalysts. We examined this hypothesis and, recently, reported that CNTs dramatically changed catalytic natures of group 4-based catalysts when they formed hybrid systems with such catalysts. In conclusion, we produced hybrid materials composed of group-4 based metallocenes, $Cp_2ZrCl_2$ and $Cp_2TiCl_2$, and carbon-based nano-materials such as RGO and MWCNT. Such hybrids were generated via simple adsorption between Cp rings of metallocenes and graphitic surfaces of graphene/CNT. The hybrids showed interesting catalytic behaviors for ethylene polymerizations. Resulting PEs had significantly increased Mw relative to those produced from free metallocene-based catalytic systems, which are not adsorbed on carbon-based nano-materials. UHMWPEs with extremely high Mw were obtained at low Tp.