Single-walled nanohorns and other nanocarbons generated by submerged arc discharge between carbon electrodes in liquid argon and other media

Arc discharge between two graphite electrodes submerged in different liquid media yields various dimensional nanocarbon structures such as 1D carbon nanotubes and 2D graphene. Single-walled carbon nanohorns (SWNHs) prepared by submerged arc discharge in liquid nitrogen medium are found to have nitrogen impurities. Here, we report the structure and properties of pure and nitrogen-doped SWNHs obtained by submerged arc discharge in a liquid argon medium. The absence of an XPS N 1s signal, which is present in nanohorns obtained in liquid nitrogen, indicate that the nanohorns are free from nitrogen impurities. Raman spectra show a strong defect-induced D band and current–voltage characteristics show a slight nonlinear behavior. N2 adsorption of pure SWNHs shows type-IV isotherms with a surface area of 300 m2 g−1. Adsorption of CO2 and H2 in pure SWNHs has also been measured. Arc discharge in other liquid media such as water, ethanol, dimethylformamide (DMF), n-methyl pyrrolidone (NMP), formamide, benzene, heptane and acetone yields different nanocarbon structures including multi-walled carbon nanotubes (MWNTs), few-layer graphene, carbon onions and carbon nanoparticles.

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