Preparation of carbon microcoils by catalytic methane hot-wire CVD process

Abstract Three-dimensional (3D) double-helix carbon microcoils (CMCs) were synthesized by the catalytic pyrolysis of methane using Ni catalyst in various hot-wire CVD processes. The most effective process is: using preheating method, in which methane was preheated at 1500 °C in a upper reaction tube by a hot wire, and chemical vapor deposition of carbon then occurred at 700–750 °C in a lower reaction tube, where CMCs were synthesized. The growth morphologies and microstructure were examined and compared with the conventional CMCs grown by acetylene catalytic pyrolysis.