Structure, growth and properties of screwed-stacked cone carbons

Screwed-stacked cone carbon (SSCC) is produced by the pyrolysis of certain organic compounds and appears to be columnar or whisker-like in shape and formed of continuous helical hexagonal carbon layers. The rotation angle between adjacent layers is commonly 21.7° or 27.8°. It has been found that SSCCs show birefringence and vertical orientation in a magnetic field. Although they are a kind of ordered turbostratic carbon, they intercalate sulfuric acid and can be subsequently expanded like graphite by heating. Further studies will elucidate their mechanical and electric properties and how they depend on the continuous non-planar graphitic features. TANSO 2015 (No. 267), 105–112.