The scientific community has a new pet, but first it has to prove it works.
Not long ago, graphene was honored by scientists worldwide as the wonder material of the future. It is an extremely strong sheet of carbon, atomic-diameter thick, that can be “transformed” into different shapes. Thanks to its ability to conduct electricity, material scientists believe that the era of computer processors made from graphene is near. The EU Union spends up to 1 billion euros to stimulate the development of the graphene industry.
But the dream has not come true, graphene has not appeared everywhere, but it has also paved the way for the physical science to find new things. One of the best candidates is borophene : a thin layer of boron atoms that can be arranged in many different crystal structures.
A boron block.
Borophene’s multi-industry, multi-purpose use is what makes it special. Electrochemists suggest that borophene could be used in the production of anodes for next-generation lithium-ion batteries; Borophene’s catalytic ability is of great interest to the scientific community. Physicists are testing its ability to detect a wide variety of atoms and molecules.
Just last month, scientist Zhi-Quiang Wang and several colleagues at Xiamen University sat down to analyze borophene’s properties and possible applications.
The development history of borophene is also very short. Since the 1990s, physicists have predicted their existence for the first time, through a program that simulates how boron atoms coalesce into a thin layer of boron.
By 2015, we had synthesized borophene, by venting hot gas densely boron molecules onto a cold surface made of pure steel.
The arrangement of the iron atoms forced the boron atom into a similar pattern, with every six boron atoms coming together to form a hexagon. However, a large portion of boron atoms combine with only 4 or 5 other boron atoms, creating holes in the hexagonal structure. It is that void that makes borophene crystals special.
Borophene is even stronger and more flexible than graphene.
Because borophene is a man-made product, scientists are looking for ways to give it additional properties. After testing, it turned out that borophene was even stronger and more flexible than graphene. It conducts both electricity and heat very well, and has superconducting properties. The above factors are based on the gaps in the borophene structure, changing the gaps is changing the properties, so scientists are eager to find a way to apply borophene in practice.
The properties of borophene go beyond that. They are lightweight and react well with a wide range of substances, making borophene a candidate for ion storage in batteries. “It is promising that borophene will be used to fabricate anodes for Lithium, Sodium and Magnesium ion batteries, based on its predicted properties, such as electrical conduction and ion transport,” said Wang et al. .
The hydrogen atom also attaches very readily to the borophene structure, making the potential wonder matter an effective hydrogen storage device. Hypothetical studies show that borophene can hold up to 15% of its own mass of hydrogen, a figure that surpasses any other material.
Borophene could become an efficient hydrogen storage device.
Borophene also has the ability to catalyze, split hydrogen atoms into hydrogen ions, split water into ions of hydrogen and oxygen. In theory, borophene could lead a new era where we can use water for energy more efficiently than ever before.
Sometimes, things are too perfect to be true. Chemists need much more testing before borophene can pioneer anything. Let’s go from the simple first, it is not clear how to produce borophene in large quantities for testing and application. The reactivity of borophene will make it susceptible to oxidation, so a way to overcome this weakness will be needed.
Both of these factors make borophene both expensive and difficult to test. There is still a lot of work ahead, but that does not discourage researchers. We already have the first studies that point to the magic of borophene, which is likely to be the material that promises.
Besides graphene, borophene is the Azor Ahai of the physical science world.