Preparation of SiC whiskers using graphene and rice husk ash and its photocatalytic property

Large-scale, low-cost synthesis of SiC whiskers is still a challenge despite it has important applications in many fields. In this work, SiC whiskers are successfully prepared using rice husk ash and graphene as materials by controlling the reaction conditions. According to these experimental discoveries, SiC morphology is influenced by the weight ratio of raw materials and reaction temperatures. As the weight ratio of rice husk ash to graphene increases, the SiC morphology trends to the form of particles. When the weight ratio is 1:1, the samples synthesized at 1450 °C have abundant SiC whiskers. The obtained SiC whisker with a high density of stacking faults exhibits the diameter of 50–150 nm and length of several 10 μm. Combined with the chemical reaction thermodynamics, the growth mechanism of the whiskers is proposed. Additionally, the SiC whiskers display excellent performance to degrade rhodamine B. This SiC whisker prepared from the rice husk ash and graphene provides a novel insight for controllably and large-scale industrial applications.