Filamentous Carbon Catalytic Deposition of Coal-Tar Pitch Fraction on Corundum

Our work was focused on deposition of volatile hydrocarbons of carbonaceous precursor on corundum wafer, taking advantage of a metallic catalyst incorporated in precursor. Coal tar-pitch, namely a fraction soluble in toluene, served as precursor material for deposition of filamentous material. The toluene-soluble fraction of tar-pitch originally contained metallic particles of iron and nickel. During heat treatment up to 1000°C, metallic particles accompanied the volatile hydrocarbons conducive to forming a filamentous deposit. The deposit obtained demonstrates a semicrystalline material that has an irregular filamentous structure with an average filament diameter of 30 µm. The presence of catalysts after the deposition process was proved in the deposit but catalysts were not found in the residuum.