PREPARATION OF CARBON NITRIDE FINE POWDER BY LASER-INDUCED GAS-PHASE REACTIONS

We present the possibility of carbon nitride fine powder synthesis by sensitized laser pyrolysis of acethylene/nitrous oxide/ammonia mixture s. The powders were analyzed using X-ray diffraction, X-ray photoelect ron spectroscopy (XPS) and IR transmission measurements. It was found that nitrogen was incorporated in powders and that in the carbon-nitro gen phases formed, the presence of the triple bonded C=N was not detec ted. The majority of X-ray diffraction data suggests the presence of a mixture of the predicted alpha- and beta-C3N4 Structure, with an alph a-C3N4-like form being prevalent. The powders were found to be slightl y contaminated by SF6 sensitizer products. Our results suggest that by improving the experimental parameters this contamination might be red uced and that the laser pyrolysis method offers possibilities for prod uction of CxNy materials, with controlled composition.