2015 Volume 66 Issue 10 Pages 467-471
The total UV energy at 254 nm was used as an index of the etching effects of both deep ultraviolet (DUV; 254 nm) and deep ultraviolet/vacuum ultraviolet irradiation （DUV/VUV; 254 nm/185 nm） on multiwalled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs). The differing etching effects from 185 nm and 254 nm UV radiation were distinguished. As the total UV energy increased under VUV/DUV irradiation, the MWCNTs morphology changed, and both the activation energy and the MWCNTs crystallinity decreased. When the total UV energy was increased under DUV irradiation, the activation energy decreased, but the morphology and the crystallinity of MWCNTs remained the same. Therefore, it was shown that exposure to an ozone lamp, which is a type of DUV/VUV light source, was required to incite morphology changes in the MWCNTs. Furthermore, a comparison of the MWCNTs irradiated with DUV or DUV/VUV radiation suggested that an etching effect could occur if the MWCNTs were irradiated with an optical source with a wavelength of less than 242 nm. This irradiation also caused the formation of highly reactive O3 and O (1D) molecules.
