title: Synthesis of Low-Density, Carbon-Doped, Porous Hexagonal Boron Nitride Solids.
abstract: Here, we report the scalable synthesis and characterization of low-density, porous, three-dimensional (3D) solids consisting of two-dimensional (2D) hexagonal boron nitride (h-BN) sheets. The structures are synthesized using bottom-up, low-temperature (∼300 °C), solid-state reaction of melamine and boric acid giving rise to porous and mechanically stable interconnected h-BN layers. A layered 3D structure forms due to the formation of h-BN, and significant improvements in the mechanical properties were observed over a range of temperatures, compared to graphene oxide or reduced graphene oxide foams. A theoretical model based on Density Functional Theory (DFT) is proposed for the formation of h-BN architectures. The material shows excellent, recyclable absorption capacity for oils and organic solvents.
authors.affiliation: Department of Physics, University of Lucknow , Lucknow, India 226007.|Department of Materials Science and Nano Engineering, Rice University , Houston, Texas 7005, United States.
authors.forename: Chandkiram
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Gautam
authors.affiliation: Department of Materials Science and Nano Engineering, Rice University , Houston, Texas 7005, United States.
authors.forename: Chandra Sekhar
authors.initials: CS
authors.lastname: Tiwary
authors.affiliation: Department of Materials Science and Nano Engineering, Rice University , Houston, Texas 7005, United States.|School of Physics, Madurai Kamaraj University , Madurai 625021, Tamil Nadu, India.
authors.forename: Sujin
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Jose
authors.affiliation: Department of Materials Science and Nano Engineering, Rice University , Houston, Texas 7005, United States.|Department of Applied Physics, State University of Campinas , Campinas SP 13083-959, Brazil.
authors.forename: Gustavo
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Brunetto
authors.affiliation: Department of Materials Science and Nano Engineering, Rice University , Houston, Texas 7005, United States.
authors.forename: Sehmus
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Ozden
authors.affiliation: Department of Materials Science and Nano Engineering, Rice University , Houston, Texas 7005, United States.
authors.forename: Soumya
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Vinod
authors.affiliation: Department of Materials Science and Nano Engineering, Rice University , Houston, Texas 7005, United States.
authors.forename: Prasanth
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Raghavan
authors.affiliation: Department of Materials Science and Nano Engineering, Rice University , Houston, Texas 7005, United States.
authors.forename: Santoshkumar
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Biradar
authors.affiliation: Department of Applied Physics, State University of Campinas , Campinas SP 13083-959, Brazil.
authors.forename: Douglas Soares
authors.initials: DS
authors.lastname: Galvao
authors.affiliation: Department of Materials Science and Nano Engineering, Rice University , Houston, Texas 7005, United States.
authors.forename: Pulickel M
authors.initials: PM
authors.lastname: Ajayan
keywords: DFT simulations; electron microscopy; hexagonal boron nitride nanosheets; mechanical properties; oil adsorption