Patent ID: 7214361

Claim:
A method for producing carbon nanotubes, comprising the steps of: providing a mixture consisting essentially of one or more metal salts and a passivating solvent, wherein the passivating solvent is 2-(2-butoxyethoxy)ethanol; mixing the mixture of said one or more metal salts and said passivating solvent; heating the mixture of said one or more metal salts and said passivating solvent to a temperature above the melting point of at least one of said one or more metal salts and maintaining the temperature above the melting point of at least one of said one or more metal salts to form metal nanoparticles; adding a powdered oxide to the mixture of metal nanoparticles and passivating solvent; mixing the mixture of metal nanoparticles, powdered oxide, and passivating solvent; extracting the metal nanoparticles and powdered oxide from the passivating solvent; annealing the metal nanoparticles and powdered oxide; heating the metal nanoparticles and powdered oxide to a temperature less than a deposition temperature; and exposing the metal nanoparticles to a carbon precursor gas while maintaining the temperature above the deposition temperature to form carbon nanotubes.