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Herein the recent experiments performed by the authors on fabricated multi-walled BN nanotubes and monoatomic BN graphene-like nanosheets are reviewed. The results are presented in several sections, namely: (i) method for high-yield synthesis of thin, defect-free BN nanotubes of only a few-layers, with external diameters below 10 nm; (ii) verification of BN nanotube piezoelectrical behavior and its electrically-induced thermal decomposition under combined resistive heating and electrical charging in a transmission electron microscope; (iii) the first direct measurements of the true tensile strength and Young's modulus of BN nanotubes, using newly developed nanotensile tests inside an electron microscope; the measured values were found to be ∼30 GPa and ∼900 GPa, respectively; and (iv) diverse kinetic processes taking place within the prepared monoatomic BN sheets (so-called 'white graphenes') affiliated with intensive knock-on B and N atom displacements under high energy electron beam irradiation in an aberration-corrected medium-voltage high-resolution transmission electron microscope. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An effective method was proposed to remove obstinate boron nitride phase impurities in boron nitride nanotubes (BNNTs). The method is based on strong interactions between BNNTs and a conjugated polymer wrapping them and significant weight and size difference between BNNTs and impurities. The as-grown samples and purified samples were compared through detailed characterization, using scanning electron microscopy, transmission electron microscopy, and Raman and Fourier transformed infrared spectroscopy. The results reveal that impurities are effectively removed and resultant BNNTs possess perfect crystallization. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article reports that proteins can be immobilized on boron nitride nanotubes (BNNTs). It suggests that there is a natural affinity of proteins to BNNTs--they can be immobilized on BNNT directly, without using an additional coupling reagent. It also reports that the effect of protein immobilization on BNNTs was studied using high-resolution transmission electron microscopy and energy dispersion spectroscopy. It argues that protein immobilization may be due to carboxylation of BNNT-bound amino groups or prominent tube/protein electrostatic interactions. However, it suggests the use of noncovalently functionalized BNNTs for effective immobilization of proteins.

Boron nitride (BN) microtubes were synthesized in a vertical induction furnace using Li2CO3 and B reactants. Their structures and morphologies were investigated using x-ray diffraction, scanning and transmission electron microscopy, and energy-dispersive x-ray spectroscopy. The microtubes have diameters of 1-3 um, lengths of up to hundreds of micrometers, and well-structured ultrathin walls only [?]50 nm thick. A mechanism combining the vapor-liquid-solid (VLS) and template self-sacrificing processes is proposed to explain the formation of these novel one-dimensional microstructures, in which the Li2O-B2O3 eutectic reaction plays an important role. Cathodoluminescence studies show that even at room temperature the thin-walled BN microtubes can possess an intense band-edge emission at [?]216.5 nm, which is distinct compared with other BN nanostructures. The study suggests that the thin-walled BN microtubes should be promising for constructing compact deep UV devices and find potential applications in microreactors and microfluidic and drug delivery systems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]