Boron Nitride Aerogels with Super-Flexibility Ranging from Liquid Nitrogen Temperature to 1000 degrees C

GY Li and MY Zhu and WB Gong and R Du and A Eychmuller and TT Li and WB Lv and XT Zhang, ADVANCED FUNCTIONAL MATERIALS, 29, 1900188 (2019).

DOI: 10.1002/adfm.201900188

Aerogels with extraordinary mechanical properties attract a lot of interest for their wide spread applications. However, the required flexibility is yet to be satisfied, especially under extreme conditions. Herein, a boron nitride nanoribbon aerogel with excellent temperature- invariant super-flexibility is developed by high temperature amination of a melamine diborate precursor formed by hydrogen bonding assembly. The unique structure of the aerogel provides it with outstanding compressing/bending/twisting elasticity, cutting resistance, and recoverable properties. Furthermore, the excellent mechanical super- flexibility is maintained over a wide temperature range, from liquid nitrogen temperature (-196 degrees C) to higher than 1000 degrees C, which extends their possible applications to harsh environments.

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