Application of ion-beam irradiation and heat treatment to optimisation of the structure and properties of composites based on multi-walled carbon nanotubes and metal oxide

Abstract

In this paper, we investigate the activation of the surface of multi-walled carbon nanotubes by irradiating them with a beam of argon ions with an energy of 5 keV during the formation of composites with tin oxide (SnOx/MWCNTs) by the method of gas-phase chemical deposition. The analysis of the structure and chemical state of the formed composites was carried out using synchrotron radiation using X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) and X-ray adsorption spectroscopy (XANES) methods. The results obtained showed that the preliminary treatment of MWCNTs with argon ions leads to the formation of oxygen-containing functional groups on their surface, which act as interfacial interaction centers during the subsequent formation of the composite. It has been shown that subsequent heat treatment allows one to partially restore the crystal structure of the walls of carbon nanotubes and optimize the crystal structure of tin oxide in the composite