Quantification of boron contents in BN/BCN composites by prompt gamma-ray neutron activation analysis utilizing thermal
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Quantification of boron contents in BN/BCN composites by prompt gamma‑ray neutron activation analysis utilizing thermal neutron beam at Dhruva reactor Lopamudra Acharya1 · Rashmi Acharya1 · Sk Wasim Raja2 · Raghunath Acharya2,3 · Kulamani Parida1 Received: 11 May 2020 © Akadémiai Kiadó, Budapest, Hungary 2020
Abstract Samples of boron (B) doped g-C3N4 (BCN) and boron nitride (BN) composite (BN/BCN) were synthesized by a simple in situ technique by varying BN content in the range of 1–10% mass fraction and boron contents are crucial for improving the activity of the composites. The composites were characterized by PXRD and FTIR in order to confirm their successful formation. Prompt Gamma Neutron Activation Analysis (PGNAA) using thermal neutron beam from Dhruva reactor was used for non-destructive determination of total boron concentration by measuring 478 keV prompt gamma-ray from 10B (n, αγ)7*Li reaction. The obtained boron concentrations are in the range of 2.3–6.2% mass fraction. Keywords Boron doped g-C3N4 (BCN) · Boron nitride (BN) · BN/BCN composite · Boron concentration · PGNAA · Thermal neutron beam
Introduction Two-dimensional (2D) materials such as graphene, hexagonal boron nitride, graphiticcarbon nitride (g-C3N4) and transition-metal dichalcogenides have recently attracted world wide attention for their potential applications in energy generation and storage, environmental remediation, chemical sensors, optical and electronic devices [1–4]. Because of visible light responsive characteristics, appealing band structure, facile fabrication techniques, low cost, high chemical stability and nontoxic property, g-C3N4 is extensively used in diversified applications of photocatalysis like H2 generation, pollutant decontamination, CO2 conversion and selective organic transformation [5–8]. However, the * Rashmi Acharya [email protected]; [email protected] * Kulamani Parida [email protected]; [email protected] 1
Centre for Nanoscience and Nanotechnology, S‘O’A Deemed to be University, Bhubaneswar 751030, India
2
Radiochemistry Division, Bhabha Atomic Research Centre, Trombay, Mumbai 400085, India
3
Department of Atomic Energy, Homi Bhabha National Institute, Mumbai 400094, India
photoactivity of pristine g-C3N4 lies far away from expectations mainly due to poor efficiency in solar light absorption, high rate of charge carriers recombination and low surface area. In order to conquer these bottlenecks, elemental and molecular doping, heterostructure construction, exfoliation to two-dimensional (2D) nanosheets, preparation of mesoporous structure, and dye sensitization strategies are adopted to enhance its photocatalytic activity [9]. Elemental doping is considered as an efficient approach to boost the performance of g-C3N4. Various metals (Cu, Fe, Zn) or non-metals(S, C, B, O, P) have been explored to be doped into g-C3N4 [10]. Non-metal doping is found to be advantageous as compared to metal doping for retaining non-metallic properties of g-C3N4. Sagara et al. [11
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