Platinum Reactions with Carbon Coatings Produced by High Temperature Chlorination of Silicon Carbide

Highly disordered graphitic carbon layers were formed on various types of commercially available silicon carbide (SiC) ceramics by reaction with chlorine and chlorine-hydrogen gas mixtures at 1000°C. The carbon was produced ranging from only a few micrometers to hundreds of micrometers thick. When a platinum sample holder was employed (instead of fused silica), platinum was found dispersed in the carbon layer concentrated near the SiC/C interface. This process can be used for incorporating platinum in porous carbon films for catalytic and other applications. In addition, the platinum resulted in a smoother physical interface between the SiC and carbon sublayer. The morphology of the platinum dispersion, its effect on the carbon layer, and its proposed formation mechanism are presented in this paper. © 2001 The Electrochemical Society. All rights reserved.