Patent ID: 7666381

Claim:
A method for producing carbon nanomaterials (CNMs) in a reactor using an inductively coupled plasma (ICP), comprising the steps of: (a) introducing the ICP into the reactor; (b) introducing a carbonaceous material into the reactor, such that the ICP heats and reacts with the carbonaceous material to produce free carbon; (c) introducing a catalyst into the reactor, the catalyst having been selected to enhance the production of CNMs from the free carbon in the reactor; (d) providing a secondary reaction chamber, the secondary reaction chamber providing additional residence time to promote the growth of longer CNMs; (e) using supplemental heat to maintain the temperature conditions in the secondary reaction chamber above a threshold value required to facilitate the additional growth of the CNMs; and (f) introducing additional carbonaceous materials into the secondary reaction chamber to provide carbon to facilitate the additional growth of the CNMs.