A Continuous Reactor for the Large Scale Production Of Nanotubes

It is proposed to development of a large-scale production apparatus that produces single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWNT) and catalytic multi-walled nanotubes (MWNT) on a continuous process basis. A novel and flexible reactor design will be investigated. Theproposed reactor design will allow the control of production parameters including catalyst type and particle size, the type of carbon source, catalyst/carbon ratio, temperature of reaction and reaction time. The apparatus will be designed for continuousoperation and product collection, which promises high production rates and low cost, and assures a successful Phase II scale-up to produce commercial quantities of this novel and versatile material.Large scale production of low cost, high yield, andcontrolled properties nanotubes can open up the potential commercialization of these novel materials. Nanotubes have the potential applications as cold electron field emitter, gas storage media, and as nanoreinforcement for advanced polymer composites.