Direct synthesis of macroscopic multiwalled carbon nanotube ribbons

Macroscopic multiwalled carbon nanotube ribbons can be directly synthesized through the catalytic decomposition of a ferrocene-xylene mixture in a quartz tube reactor. The ribbons are about 20-100 mu m wide, 10-30 mu m thick, and their length can reach 14 mm in 12 h. The nanotubes in each ribbon are closely compact and parallel to each other along the direction of the ribbon axis.