Cobalt catalyst micro-fluidic systems hold high potential for efficient purification of water containing organic pollutants. We investigated how thermal annealing and post treatment with plasma affect the production of Co3O4 nanocrystals. To prepare the samples, plasma enhanced chemical vapor deposition was used. By XRD, an increase in crystallization production was observed after post-treatment for 40 minutes and after annealing at 500 and 800 centigrade. Using   SEM, TEM, and EPS, cobalt abundance was determined to be greatest when post-treatment was employed, and clearest crystal structures were observed after thermal annealing. The post treatment times were then varied and analyzed by XRD. However, no clear pattern emerged. We plan to further investigate by running SEM and TEM on the same samples, and to deposit the cobalt catalyst on the micro reactor to test the catalytic properties. These findings will aid in the production of future cobalt catalyst micro-fluidic reactors.

Plasma post treatment and thermal annealing on cobalt catalyst micro-fluidic systems

243rd National Meeting (2012)

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