Investigation of metal-carbon tubulenes by x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy and electron microscopy

Two types of methods for creating metal-carbon tubulenes are applied: (1) dehydropolycondensation and stimulated carbonization of aromatic compou nds in active media containing metal powders and metal ions; (2) dehydration, dehydropolycondensation and stimulated carbonization of po lyfunctional polymer (polyvinyl alcohol) in analogous active media. The possibility of tubulene formation is determined by means of quantum che mical calculation. To study the structure of the substances formed, various experimental metho ds, including x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy and electron microscopy, are used. In accordance with the experimental results, especially the x-ray photoelec tron spectra, the structural features of the tubulenes obtained are determi ned from the chemical structures of the hydrocarbons, the functional groups of the polymer and the properties of the active media and metal dispersity . The investigation by electron microscopy confirms the formation of cylindri cal carbon tubulenes containing alternate metal corpuscles in a composite i nner pattern as a result of response-stimulated dehydropolycondensation and stimulated carbonization. Thus, the method applied is suitable for obtaini ng cylindrical carbon nanostructures containing metals. Copyright (C) 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.