Preparation of amorphous carbon nanotubes using attapulgite as template and furfuryl alcohol as carbon source

Amorphous carbon nanotubes were synthesized by vapor deposition polymerization (VDP) method using attapulgite as template and furfuryl alcohol as carbon source. The morphology and microstructure analysis of the as-prepared samples showed that highly pure amorphous carbon nanotubes were obtained, and determined by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), X-ray diffraction (XRD), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), selected area electron diffraction (SEAD) and energy dispersive X-ray (EDX) spectrum. The Brunauer–Emmett–Teller (BET) surface area analysis indicated that the specific surface area of the as-prepared amorphous carbon nanotubes reaches up to 503.1 m2/g. A hypothesis about the formation mechanism of the amorphous carbon nanotubes was also proposed accordingly.