Cargando…

Synthesis of core–shell copper–graphite submicronic particles and carbon nano-onions by spark discharges in liquid hydrocarbons

Spark discharge in hydrocarbon liquids is considered a promising method for the synthesis of various nanomaterials, including nanocomposites. In this study, copper–carbon particles were synthesized by generating spark discharges between two Cu electrodes immersed in heptane, cyclohexane, or toluene....

Descripción completa

Detalles Bibliográficos
Autores principales: Glad, X., Gorry, J., Cha, M. S., Hamdan, A.
Formato: Online Artículo Texto
Lenguaje:English
Publicado: Nature Publishing Group UK 2021
Materias:
Acceso en línea:https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8024313/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/33824376
http://dx.doi.org/10.1038/s41598-021-87222-x
_version_ 1783675287751360512
author Glad, X.
Gorry, J.
Cha, M. S.
Hamdan, A.
author_facet Glad, X.
Gorry, J.
Cha, M. S.
Hamdan, A.
author_sort Glad, X.
collection PubMed
description Spark discharge in hydrocarbon liquids is considered a promising method for the synthesis of various nanomaterials, including nanocomposites. In this study, copper–carbon particles were synthesized by generating spark discharges between two Cu electrodes immersed in heptane, cyclohexane, or toluene. The synthesized particles were characterized using scanning electron microscopy, high-resolution transmission electron microscopy, and selected area electron diffraction. Overall, two families of particles were observed: Cu particles (diameter < 10 nm) embedded in a carbon matrix and submicrometric Cu particles encapsulated in a carbon shell. The obtained results indicate that the size distribution of the Cu nanoparticles and the degree of graphitization of the carbon matrix depend on the liquid. Indeed, discharges in heptane lead to Cu particles with diameters of 2–6 nm embedded in a carbon matrix of low graphitization degree, while discharges in toluene result in particles with diameters of 2–14 nm embedded in carbon matrix of high graphitization degree. Based on the obtained experimental results, it is proposed that the Cu nanoparticles are produced in the plasma core where Cu (evaporated from the electrode surface) and carbonaceous species (decomposition of the liquid) are present. When the plasma hits the electrode surface, hot (thousands of Kelvin) Cu particles are ejected from the electrode, and they propagate in the liquid. The propagation of the hot particles in the liquid results in the local evaporation of this liquid, which leads to the formation of a C-shell around each Cu particle. In few cases where the shape of the Cu particle is not spherical, carbon nanoonions are detected between the C-shell and the Cu core. These nanoonions are supposedly formed under the effect of the fluid vortices generated close to the particle surfaces when these latter are ejected into the liquid.
format Online
Article
Text
id pubmed-8024313
institution National Center for Biotechnology Information
language English
publishDate 2021
publisher Nature Publishing Group UK
record_format MEDLINE/PubMed
spelling pubmed-80243132021-04-08 Synthesis of core–shell copper–graphite submicronic particles and carbon nano-onions by spark discharges in liquid hydrocarbons Glad, X. Gorry, J. Cha, M. S. Hamdan, A. Sci Rep Article Spark discharge in hydrocarbon liquids is considered a promising method for the synthesis of various nanomaterials, including nanocomposites. In this study, copper–carbon particles were synthesized by generating spark discharges between two Cu electrodes immersed in heptane, cyclohexane, or toluene. The synthesized particles were characterized using scanning electron microscopy, high-resolution transmission electron microscopy, and selected area electron diffraction. Overall, two families of particles were observed: Cu particles (diameter < 10 nm) embedded in a carbon matrix and submicrometric Cu particles encapsulated in a carbon shell. The obtained results indicate that the size distribution of the Cu nanoparticles and the degree of graphitization of the carbon matrix depend on the liquid. Indeed, discharges in heptane lead to Cu particles with diameters of 2–6 nm embedded in a carbon matrix of low graphitization degree, while discharges in toluene result in particles with diameters of 2–14 nm embedded in carbon matrix of high graphitization degree. Based on the obtained experimental results, it is proposed that the Cu nanoparticles are produced in the plasma core where Cu (evaporated from the electrode surface) and carbonaceous species (decomposition of the liquid) are present. When the plasma hits the electrode surface, hot (thousands of Kelvin) Cu particles are ejected from the electrode, and they propagate in the liquid. The propagation of the hot particles in the liquid results in the local evaporation of this liquid, which leads to the formation of a C-shell around each Cu particle. In few cases where the shape of the Cu particle is not spherical, carbon nanoonions are detected between the C-shell and the Cu core. These nanoonions are supposedly formed under the effect of the fluid vortices generated close to the particle surfaces when these latter are ejected into the liquid. Nature Publishing Group UK 2021-04-06 /pmc/articles/PMC8024313/ /pubmed/33824376 http://dx.doi.org/10.1038/s41598-021-87222-x Text en © The Author(s) 2021 Open Access This article is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License, which permits use, sharing, adaptation, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, as long as you give appropriate credit to the original author(s) and the source, provide a link to the Creative Commons licence, and indicate if changes were made. The images or other third party material in this article are included in the article's Creative Commons licence, unless indicated otherwise in a credit line to the material. If material is not included in the article's Creative Commons licence and your intended use is not permitted by statutory regulation or exceeds the permitted use, you will need to obtain permission directly from the copyright holder. To view a copy of this licence, visit http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/.
spellingShingle Article
Glad, X.
Gorry, J.
Cha, M. S.
Hamdan, A.
Synthesis of core–shell copper–graphite submicronic particles and carbon nano-onions by spark discharges in liquid hydrocarbons
title Synthesis of core–shell copper–graphite submicronic particles and carbon nano-onions by spark discharges in liquid hydrocarbons
title_full Synthesis of core–shell copper–graphite submicronic particles and carbon nano-onions by spark discharges in liquid hydrocarbons
title_fullStr Synthesis of core–shell copper–graphite submicronic particles and carbon nano-onions by spark discharges in liquid hydrocarbons
title_full_unstemmed Synthesis of core–shell copper–graphite submicronic particles and carbon nano-onions by spark discharges in liquid hydrocarbons
title_short Synthesis of core–shell copper–graphite submicronic particles and carbon nano-onions by spark discharges in liquid hydrocarbons
title_sort synthesis of core–shell copper–graphite submicronic particles and carbon nano-onions by spark discharges in liquid hydrocarbons
topic Article
url https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8024313/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/33824376
http://dx.doi.org/10.1038/s41598-021-87222-x
work_keys_str_mv AT gladx synthesisofcoreshellcoppergraphitesubmicronicparticlesandcarbonnanoonionsbysparkdischargesinliquidhydrocarbons
AT gorryj synthesisofcoreshellcoppergraphitesubmicronicparticlesandcarbonnanoonionsbysparkdischargesinliquidhydrocarbons
AT chams synthesisofcoreshellcoppergraphitesubmicronicparticlesandcarbonnanoonionsbysparkdischargesinliquidhydrocarbons
AT hamdana synthesisofcoreshellcoppergraphitesubmicronicparticlesandcarbonnanoonionsbysparkdischargesinliquidhydrocarbons