Formation of SiC nanowhiskers by carbothermic reduction of silica with activated carbon

The silicon carbide (SiC) nanowhiskers were obtained by a carbothermic reduction of silica (SiO₂) with activated carbon at 1450 °C. The products were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), Fourier transformed infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR), field emission scanning electron microscopy (FE-SEM) and high resolution transmission electron microscopy (HR-TEM). The SiC nanowhiskers were grown as crystalline β-SiC with the diameter ranging from 20 to 150 nm grew along (111) direction with the length up to several tens of micrometers. Yield of β-SiC is very high with the moderate amount of un-reacted SiO₂. This is the first report on the synthesis of high yield of β-SiC by simple direct heating method.