A facile route to prepare boron nitride hollow particles at 450 °C

Hexagonal boron nitride (h-BN) particles including hollow spheres (with a proportion of ~30–40%) and nanotubes (10%) have been synthesized by using sodium fluoroborate and sodium azide at 450 °C for 20 h. X-ray diffraction (XRD) and high-resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM) studies show that the as-obtained BN hollow particles are crystalline. The total specific surface area of the product calculated from Brunauer–Emmentt–Teller (BET) absorption measurement is 89.79 m2/g, indicating that it may be utilized as a promising candidate for hydrogen storage container or catalyst. Thermal gravimetric analysis (TGA) result reveals its excellent thermal stability below 800 °C. Its possible growth mechanism and the effects of reaction parameters were also briefly discussed.