Patent ID: 7431965

Claim:
A chemical vapor deposition process for the preparation of a single-wall carbon nanotube, comprising: contacting a carbon-containing gas composition with a porous membrane having a first side and a second side, wherein the first side is opposite to the second side, and wherein a thin catalyst layer is present on at least the first side of the membrane, wherein the thin catalyst layer comprises Al 2 O 3 :Fe in molar ratio from about 50:1 to about 2:1, Al 2 O 3 :Mo in molar ratio from about 100:1 to about 5:1, and Fe:Mo in molar ratio from about 15:1 to about 1:2; and at a temperature sufficient to decompose said carbon-containing gas composition in the presence of said thin catalyst layer causing growth of a single-wall carbon nanotube, wherein a pressure differential exists across the porous membrane, the pressure on the second side being less than that on the first side.