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Flow Simulations Including Iron Nanoparticle Nucleation, Growth and Evaporation for Floating Catalyst CNT Production

Published version
Peer-reviewed

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Authors

Gökstorp, Filip K. A.  ORCID logo  https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2411-266X
Juniper, Matthew P.  ORCID logo  https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8742-9541

Abstract

We use a computational fluid dynamics model coupled with a particle dynamics model to simulate how catalyst nanoparticles nucleate, grow and evaporate over the length of a floating catalyst reactor. We focus on the influence of the flowrate in the reactor and the ferrocene mass fraction on the production of the catalyst nanoparticles. In the downstream region of the reactor, where the majority of CNT growth occurs, we find that, as either the flowrate or the ferrocene mass fraction increases, the particle mass fraction profile changes, with the mass fraction peak shifting away from the centreline. This displacement away from the centreline of the mass fraction peak may explain why the CNTs form a hollow, sock-like, aerogel at the downstream end of the reactor.

Description

Keywords

carbon nanotubes, computational fluid dynamics, floating catalyst, chemical vapour deposition, CNT synthesis, catalytic synthesis, particle modelling

Journal Title

Catalysts

Conference Name

Journal ISSN

2073-4344

Volume Title

10

Publisher

MDPI