CoFe2O4-decorated carbon nanotubes for the dehydration of glucose and fructose

Abstract

Multi-walled carbon nanotubes (CNTs) decorated with different ferrites have been synthesized and successfully used under heterogeneous conditions in the dehydration of fructose. In addition, inverse spinels, such as cobalt ferrite (CoFe₂O₄) and magnetite (Fe₃O₄), decorated on CNTs showed better performance than normal spinel such as zinc ferrite (ZnFe₂O₄)-decorated CNTs. The catalyst could be easily recycled and the protocol was simple. Moreover, functionalized CNTs were characterized using various methods, including Raman spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction and Transmission Electron Microscope analysis. The crystallite size of CoFe₂O₄-decorated CNTs was nearly 20 nm.