EVALUATION OF DIFFERENT ROUTES OF LIQUID EXFOLIATION FOR THE OBTENTION OF HEXAGONAL BORON NITRIDE NANOSHEETS

Hexagonal boron nitride (h-BN), graphite analogous structure, has many interesting applications due to its excellent thermal, electrical and mechanical properties. In this study, different routes of liquid exfoliation using solvent and ultrasound were used to obtain two-dimensional (2D) nanosheets of h-BN. The efficiency of the exfoliative routes was evaluated by Transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and UV-Vis spectroscopy. Results demonstrated that the technique was effective in the exfoliation of h-BN bulk and that the solvent's choice, considering an optimum surface tension of the solvent-solute system, and the rotation of the centrifugation in the selection of the exfoliated nanosheets, are crucial for the performance of the technique. The most promising exfoliation route has been found to be the dispersion of h-BN in solvent mixture (20% IPA in water) for 3 h on ultrasound, followed by centrifugation at 1500 or 3000 rpm.