Facile synthesis of hexagonal boron nitride fibers with uniform morphology

Hexagonal boron nitride (h-BN) fibers were synthesized via the polymeric precursor method using boric acid (H3BO3) and melamine (C3H6N6) as raw materials. The precursor fibers were synthesized by a water bath and BN fibers were prepared from the precursor at 1600 °C for 3 h in flowing nitrogen atmosphere. The products were characterized by X-ray powder diffraction, Fourier transformation infrared spectroscopy, thermogravimetry and scanning electron microscopy. The results showed that h-BN fibers with uniform morphology were successfully fabricated. The well-synthesized fibers were 1–2 μm in diameter and 200–500 μm in length.