• Journal of the Korean institute of surface engineering
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• v.51 no.5
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• pp.332-336
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• 2018

Alkaline oxygen electrocatalysis, targeting anion exchange membrane alkaline-based metal-air batteries has become a subject of intensive investigation because of its advantages compared to its acidic counterparts in reaction kinetics and materials stability. However, significant breakthroughs in the design and synthesis of efficient oxygen reduction catalysts from earth-abundant elements instead of precious metals in alkaline media still remain in high demand. One of the most inexpensive alternatives is carbonaceous materials, which have attracted extensive attention either as catalyst supports or as metal-free cathode catalysts for oxygen reduction. Also, carbon composite materials have been recognized as the most promising because of their reasonable balance between catalytic activity, durability, and cost. In particular, heteroatom (e.g., N, B, S or P) doping on carbon materials can tune the electronic and geometric properties of carbon, providing more active sites and enhancing the interaction between carbon structure and active sites. Here, we focused on boron and nitrogen doped nanocarbon composit (BNC nanocarbon) catalysts synthesized by a solution plasma process using the simple precursor of pyridine and boric acid without further annealing process. Additionally, guidance for rational design and synthesis of alkaline ORR catalysts with improved activity is also presented.

• Carbon letters
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• v.14 no.4
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• pp.210-217
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• 2013

The synthesis of carbon nanomaterials (CNMs) by a chemical vapor deposition method using three different plant oils as precursors is presented. Because there are four parameters involved in the synthesis of CNM (i.e., the precursor, reaction temperature of the furnace, catalysts, and the carrier gas), each having three variables, it was decided to use the Taguchi optimization method with the 'the larger the better' concept. The best parameter regarding the yield of carbon varied for each type of precursor oil. It was a temperature of $900^{\circ}C$ + Ni as a catalyst for neem oil; $700^{\circ}C$ + Co for karanja oil and $500^{\circ}C$ + Zn as a catalyst for castor oil. The morphology of the nanocarbon produced was also impacted by different parameters. Neem oil and castor oil produced carbon nanotube (CNT) at $900^{\circ}C$; at lower temperatures, sphere-like structures developed. In contrast, karanja oil produced CNTs at all the assessed temperatures. X-ray diffraction and Raman diffraction analyses confirmed that the nanocarbon (both carbon nano beads and CNTs) produced were graphitic in nature.

• Journal of the Korean institute of surface engineering
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• v.50 no.2
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• pp.108-113
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• 2017

We investigated the effect of graphite electrode geometry and combination on nanocarbon material synthesis using underwater discharge plasma(UDP). The UDP system consists of two graphite electrodes and beaker filled with de-ionized water. A high voltage of 15 kV with a frequency of 25 kHz is applied to produce UDP using an alternating-current power source. The UDP system with conical electrodes produced the largest amount of products due to the concentration of electrical fields between electrodes. In addition, hollow-shaped stationary electrode and conical-shaped moving electrode stores discharge-induced bubbles and maintains longer reaction time. We found from Raman spectroscopy and electron microscopy that high quality carbon nanomaterials including carbon nanotubes are synthesized by the UDP system.

• Polymer Science and Technology
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• v.24 no.2
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• pp.165-176
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• 2013

• Carbon letters
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• v.7 no.4
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• pp.245-248
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• 2006

Thin films of carbon-nano materials (CNMs) of different morphology have been successfully deposited on ceramic substrate by CVD at temperatures $800^{\circ}C$, $850^{\circ}C$ and $900^{\circ}C$ using plant based oils in the presence of transition metal catalysts (Ni, Co and Ni/Co alloys). Based on the return and insertion loss, microwave absorption properties of thin film of nanocarbon material are measured using passive micro-Strip line components. The result indicates that amongst CNMs synthesized from oil of natural precursors (mustered oil - Brassica napus, Karanja oil - Pongamia glabra, Cotton oil - Gossipium hirsuta and Neem oil - Azadirachta indica) carbon nano fibers obtained from neem's seed oil showed better microwave absorption (~20dB) in the range of 8.0 GHz to 17.90 GHz.