Apparatuses and methods for producing covetic materials using microwave reactors

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-12492460-B2
Application number	US-202318197842-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	May 16, 2023
Priority date	Aug 2, 2018
Publication date	Dec 9, 2025
Grant date	Dec 9, 2025

Abstract

Apparatuses and methods for producing covetic materials by exciting a hydrocarbon gas with pulse microwaves to form hydrocarbon radicals in a hot first region of a microwave reactor. Graphene nanoplatelets are formed by the nucleation, growth and assembly of the hydrocarbon radicals, and contact a metal melt introduced downstream of the hot region to produce a mixture of molten metal and graphene nanoplatelets which assemble in-flight to form covetic materials. Graphene planes are infused in the metal matrix to achieve carbon loadings of at least 60%.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1 . A reactor including:
an energy source configured to provide a microwave energy to the reactor; a first inlet through which a hydrocarbon gas flows into the reactor; an inner tube disposed in fluid communication with the first inlet and configured to dissociate the hydrocarbon gas into a plasma based on the microwave energy, the plasma including carbon and carbon radicals; an annular region surrounding the inner tube and bounded by a reactor wall; a second inlet disposed downstream of the first inlet and coupled to the annular region, the second inlet configured to receive metal particles entrained in a carrier gas; an inductive heater disposed in thermal communication with the reactor and configured to melt the metal particles; and an outlet configured to produce carbon-metal composites based at least in part on the melted metal particles and the plasma.

2 . The reactor of claim 1 , wherein the production of the carbon-metal composites is based on contact of the melted metal particles and the plasma upstream of the outlet.

3 . The reactor of claim 1 , wherein the carbon-metal composites include alternating graphene-metal layers organized according to a crystal configuration of the metal particles.

4 . The reactor of claim 1 , wherein a carbon loading in the carbon-metal composites is approximately 60%.

5 . The reactor of claim 1 , wherein a carbon loading in the carbon-metal composites is between about 60% and 90%.

6 . The reactor of claim 1 , further including an acceleration zone configured to accelerate a flow of the carbon-metal composites through the outlet.

7 . The reactor of claim 6 , wherein the acceleration zone is further configured to quench the carbon-metal composites.

8 . The reactor of claim 1 , further including a substrate upon which the carbon-metal composites are cooled.

9 . The reactor of claim 1 , further including a mechanical tumbler agitator disposed downstream of the outlet.

10 . The reactor of claim 1 , further including a fluidized bed reactor disposed downstream of the outlet.

11 . The reactor of claim 1 , wherein the microwave energy includes pulsed microwave energy.

12 . The reactor of claim 11 , wherein the pulsed microwave energy is associated with transverse electromagnetic wave propagation.

13 . The reactor of claim 11 , wherein the pulsed microwave energy is associated with transverse electric wave (TE) propagation.

14 . The reactor of claim 11 , wherein the reactor is configured to tune one or more of a duty cycle of the pulsed microwave energy, or a power level or duty cycle of the inductive heater.

15 . The reactor of claim 1 , wherein the inner tube comprises a dielectric tube.

16 . The reactor of claim 15 , wherein the dielectric tube includes a quartz tube.

17 . The reactor of claim 1 , wherein a temperature of the metal particles is independent of a temperature of the plasma.

18 . The reactor of claim 1 , wherein the metal particles include one or more of aluminum, copper, nickel, copper, gold, zinc, tin, lead, or silver.

19 . The reactor of claim 1 , wherein the metal melt includes one or more of fully-melted metal or partially melted metal.

20 . The reactor of claim 1 , wherein the metal melt includes metal melt droplets.

Assignees

• Lyten Inc

Inventors

• Stowell Michael W
• Lanning Bruce
• Williams Peter Todd
• Cook Daniel

Classifications

• H05H1/26

  Plasma torches · CPC title

• H05H1/46

  using applied electromagnetic fields, e.g. high frequency or microwave energy (H05H1/26 takes precedence) · CPC title

• H05H1/461

  Microwave discharges · CPC title

• B22F2202/13

  Use of plasma · CPC title

• B22F2007/042

  characterised by the layer forming method · CPC title