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Boron-rich boron carbide from soot: a low-temperature green synthesis approach

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Abstract

Boron carbide is a promising super-hard semiconducting material for refractory applications ranging from the nuclear industry to spacecraft. The present work is the first report of not only turning futile soot, containing carbon allotropes in varying composition, into boron-rich boron carbide (BC), but also developing it by a low-cost, low-temperature, and green synthesis method. The BC synthesised from gingelly oil soot is subjected to structural, morphological, and optical characterisations. The field emission scanning electron microscope shows beautiful flower-like morphology, and the thermogravimetric analysis reveals the high-temperature stability of the sample synthesised. The Tauc plot of the sample indicates a 2.38 eV direct bandgap. The formation of BC and boron-rich carbide evidenced by X-ray diffraction studies is confirmed through Raman and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopic signatures of B–C and C–B–C bonds. The fluorescence, power spectrum, and CIE analyses carried out suggest the blue light emission for excitation at 350 nm.

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Abbreviations

BC:

Boron carbide

CNP:

Carbon nanoparticle

CNT:

Carbon nanotubes

EDS:

Energy-dispersive spectroscopy

XRD:

X-ray powder diffraction

FE:

Field emission

SEM:

Scanning electron microscope

TGA:

Thermogravimetric analysis

UV–Vis:

Ultraviolet–visible

PL:

Photoluminescence

FT:

Fourier Transform

IR:

Infrared

CIE:

International Commission on Illumination

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Funding

This study was not funded by any agencies in the public, commercial, or not-for-profit sectors.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Optoelectronics, University of Kerala, Trivandrum, Kerala, 695581, India

    M. S. Swapna, H. V. Saritha Devi & S. Sankararaman

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  1. M. S. Swapna
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  2. H. V. Saritha Devi
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Correspondence to S. Sankararaman.

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Swapna, M.S., Saritha Devi, H.V. & Sankararaman, S. Boron-rich boron carbide from soot: a low-temperature green synthesis approach. J. Korean Ceram. Soc. 57, 651–657 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s43207-020-00066-5

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