Synthesis of carbon hollow spheres and particles from CCl4 and Mo

Carbon materials with different morphology were prepared by reacting CCl4 and Mo at 873–1173 K. At 873–973 K, hollow spheres (diameter: 1–3 μm, shell thickness: 50 nm) were obtained. At 1073 K, particles (diameter: 50–100 nm) encapsulated in spherical shells (diameter: 1–5 μm) were collected. At 1173 K, formation of particles (diameter: 200–300 nm) was observed. Mo acted as a reagent to remove chlorine atoms from the carbon source and a template for the formation of the spherical structures. We propose that reaction temperature and polymerization of chlorinated species formed from the pyrolysis of CCl4 affect the morphology of carbon products greatly.