Study on the microstructure of two kinds of pitch carbon

The microstructure of two kinds of pitch carbon was studied by polarized light microscopy (PLM), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and XRD techniques respectively. PLM results indicate that the normal pitch carbon is mosaics with different size and isotropic, the mesophase pitch carbon is mainly for flow domain. The SEM results show the normal pitch carbon is the grain and lamellar structure, the mesophase pitch carbon is the lamellar banded structure. The HRTEM lattice images of the normal pitch carbon are composed of amorphous and crystallite, the lattice fringes of the mesophase pitch carbon are arranged regularly, and the preferred orientation is high. The degree of the graphite and the interlayer spacing of the mesophase pitch carbon are better than that of the normal pitch carbon.