Influence of reaction temperature on phase assemblage and morphologies of SiC nanowires by a carbothermal reduction method

3C-SiC nanowires were synthesized using Si, SiO2, and active carbon as raw materials at different reaction temperatures without additional metal catalysts. The influence of reaction temperature on the phase assemblage and morphologies of the products were investigated by XRD and SEM. The experimental results indicate that a suitable reaction temperature is essential for the final products. When the reaction temperature was not high enough (1400 and 1450(circle)C), the raw materials were not reacted completely, and a small amount of targeted nanowires were formed. When reaction temperature increased to 1500(circle)C, the nanowires were mainly composed of 3C-SiC phase, and they were straight, curved, and needle-shaped. The straight nanowires ranged from several to tens of microns, but the diameters were not uniform. The vapor-solid mechanism dominantly governed the formation of SiC nanowires.