Comparative process analysis of fullerene production by the arc and the radio-frequency discharge methods.

In this work, comparative analysis of processes in carbon arc and radio frequency (RF) plasma during fullerene synthesis has been presented. The kinetic model of fullerene formation developed earlier has been verified in both types of plasma reactors. The fullerene yield depended on carbon concentration, velocity of plasma flame and rotational temperature of C2 radicals predominantly. When mean rotational temperature of C2 radicals was 3000 K, the fullerene yield was the highest regardless of the type of used reactor. The zone of fullerene formation is larger significantly in RF plasma reactor compared to arc reactor.