Researchers at Kindai University in Japan have developed a new iron-scandium catalyst that significantly extends the lifetime of carbon nanotube growth at high temperatures. The catalyst stays active for about 18 minutes at 900 degrees Celsius, compared to just 7 to 8 minutes with other rare-earth cocatalysts. This breakthrough could lead to longer, higher-quality carbon nanotubes for use in advanced batteries, electrochemical biosensors, and strong structural materials. The key finding is that scandium helps keep iron nanoparticles stable and prevents them from clumping together during synthesis. This allows for centimeter-long nanotube forests, which are essential for practical applications in energy storage and sensing. The work was published in the journal Carbon and funded by the Japan Society for the Promotion of Science. It offers a new way to engineer catalyst chemistry for high-temperature reactions.
