Vaal University of Technology – TechConnect Briefs

Synthesis and characterization of carbon nanotubes by catalytic decomposition of acetylene with Fe/Co/MgO, Co/Zn/Al and (C5H7O2)3Mn/Al as catalysts

Dikio E.D., Vaal University of Technology, ZA

We report our studies on the effect of various catalysts in the synthesis of carbon nanomaterials. The as-prepared carbon nanomaterials were characterized by Raman spectroscopy, high resolution transmission electron microscopy and X-ray diffraction. The catalysts [...]

Synthesis and Characterization of Graphene Thin Films via Hummer’s Method

Thema F.T., Moloto M.J., Nyangiwe N.N., Khenfouch M., Maaza M., Kotsedi L, Dikio E.D., Vaal University of Technology, ZA

Graphene oxide (GO) and reduced graphene oxide (RGO) were synthesized by Hummer’s method and characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), Attenuated total reflectance (ATR), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR), Ultra-violet visible spectroscopy (UV-vis), Atomic Force Microscopy [...]

Designing nanomaterials mechanical properties from the observable nanostructure features

Tengen T.B., Vaal University of Technology, ZA

Recent findings report that both mean grain size and dispersion should be used to design nanomaterials with desired mechanical properties. Grain size deals with “equivalent radius” that assumes that grains are spherical. But two grains [...]