Structural evolution of turbostratic carbon nitride after being treated with a pulse discharge

Turbostratic carbon nitride was prepared by the pyrolysis of melamine and then treated with a pulse discharge for different times. It is found that after this high-temperature short-time treatment, the structures of the products have changed while the high nitrogen content has been effectively maintained. The obtained product was characterized by X-ray diffraction and infrared spectroscopy. The composition was measured by an element analyzer. An orthorhombic CNx phase has been obtained, identified by transmission electron microscopy coupled with selected area electron diffraction. High-resolution transmission electron microscopy revealed that the product has some nanocrystals having a fringe spacing of approximately 0.32 nm, which embedded in a turbostratic matrix.