以乙醇、甲醇及液化石油气为碳源，低碳钢及含Ni合金钢等为基板，采用火焰法成功地制备出了一维碳纳米材料，包括碳纳米管（CNTs）和一种新的“实心”碳纳米纤维（CNFs）。利用场发射枪高分辨扫描电镜（SEM）、透射电镜（TEM）和激光Raman 光谱对碳纳米材料的结构进行了表征。发现基板材料决定燃烧生成物的性质，含Fe 元素及其化合物的基板材料倾向于合成“ 实心”碳纳米纤维，而含Ni 元素及其化合物的基板材料倾向于合成“空心”的碳纳米管，认为这是由于碳与Fe 的亲和力比Ni 大而造成的。不同碳源对一维碳纳米材料的形态也有影响，这与它们的含碳量和燃烧热等不同有关。

Fractographic and microstructural evaluations of fracture surfaces of different zones within welded dissimilar steel joints are difficult to conduct by conventional methods because of the very small dimensions of the various regions in the joint. In the present paper, a novel non-standard notch impact specimen is introduced. By using this specimen, a cross-sectioned fracture was obtained, and successive variations of the fracture surfaces, corresponding to individual microstructures of all regions in the joint, were clearly identified. When comparing the fracture surface between as welded and post-weld heat treated (PWHT) joints, it was found that the transition zone fractured in a brittle disbonding manner owing to carbon migration, and the location of the poorest part in the joints transferred from the heat affected zone (HAZ) in the as welded state into the transition zone after post-weld heat treatment. The described specimen and analysis approach can be used to conduct other fractographic and microstructural evaluations, such as in tensile tests.

A novel process for synthesizing carbon nanotubes (CNTs) in ethanol flames is described. The CNTs grow on a nanocrystalline Ni layer which was electro-deposited on a Ni substrate using periodic reverse (PR) pulse plating. The grain size of the plating and CNT morphology were revealed using XRD, SEM, TEM and Raman spectroscopy. It was found that the quality of the plating and the corresponding CNTs were related to two plating parameters: output pulse frequency (f) and duty cycle (r). The growth mechanism of CNTs in this process is discussed.

This paper introduces a process to synthesize well aligned carbon nanotubes (CNTs) from ethanol flames by using a uniform electric field generated from a DC power supply. It has been found that (1) comparing with the other processes a small electric field is enough to align CNTs; (2) the synthesis process becomes more controllable and repeatable; (3) the electric field also improves the diameter uniformity and the crystallinity of graphite sheets. It is thought that the alignment mechanism is due to the electrostatic force acting upon the catalyst particles at the tips of CNTs. The present process has advantages such as convenience of applying electric field, simple experiment set-up, and large area synthesis of well aligned CNTs.