Preparation And Characterization Of Noble Metals And Their Alloys / Carbon Nanotube Composites

Carbon nanotubes (CNTs) with unique one-dimensional nanostructures, high aspect ratio and distinguished electic properties into a unity have been widely applied in many fields. Especially, after combining noble metal nanoparticles and their alloys with CNTs to obtain composites, they displayed unexampled superiority. In this work, Pt/CNTs, FePt/CNTs and Au/CNTs composites have been prepared by a simple microwave-irradiated method, and the corresponding growth mechanism has been discussed and their electrochemical and magnetic properties were briefly explored in the end.1 High-density attachment and array monodispersive Pt NPs on CNTs to generate Pt/CNTs hybrids are obtained via one-pot microwave polyol method. The morphology, composition of the as-obtained Pt/CNTs hybrids are characterized by transmission electron microscopy (TEM), X-ray diffraction (XRD). The Raman spectrum and Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectrum show the introduction of defects or functional groups on CNTs surface, which are crucial factors to assist the nucleation and growth of Pt NPs along the skeleton of CNTs. Electrochemical measurements demonstrate that Pt/CNTs have a good catalytical property for the oxidation of methanol.2 Nanohybrid materials consisting of FePt nanoparticles and CNTs were constructed via a carbon nanotubes-mediated one-pot self-assembly route. The microwave-assisted reactions have shown a significant advantage for the rapid and homogenous production of carbon nanotube/FePt hybrids. By varying the solvents, the composition of FePt could be well adjusted to obtain ideal Fe₄₉Pt₅₁/CNTs hybrids. The structure and composition of CNTs/FePt hybrids were characterized by XRD, TEM, magnetic measurements. The possible mechanism has also been discussed.3 Monodisperse gold NPs stabilized by oleylamine (OAm) and oleic acid (OA) have been attached on the surface of CNTs to obtain Au/CNT composites by a microwave-assisted reaction. The as-produced Au/CNT composites are characterized by TEM, XRD, energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy(EDS)and ultraviolet-visual absorption spectroscopy (UV-vis). The composites show characteristic plasmon absorption of Au NPs in the UV-vis spectrum. Electrochemical measurements demonstrate the electronic conduction ability of the gold electrode modified with Au/CNT composites is stronger than that of the bare gold electrode.