Large-Scale Synthesis of Boron Nitride Nanotubes with Iron-Supported Catalysts

[[abstract]]Boron nitride nanotubes (BNNTs) were synthesized in a large scale with iron-supported catalysts (Fe/SiO2-Al2O3) at low temperatures (900 degrees C) in a plasma-assisted chemical vapor deposition system. The structural morphology, chemical composition, and optical and photoluminescence properties of BNNTs were characterized. The obtained BNNTs are crystalline and with tubular structures, and the preferential zigzag arrangement of BNNTs was discovered for the first time for BNNT grown at low temperature (< 1000 degrees C). The O-2 additives were found to affect the growth yield significantly and it was attributed to the enhanced dehydrogenation from the catalyst surface and improved balancing of excess H radicals during our synthetic process. In addition, results from elemental-mapping revealed that the boron dissolved in iron tends to precipitate and react with nitrogen to form a BN sheet oil the catalyst Surface.[[fileno]]2060126010040[[department]]工程與系統科學