Reactivity of atomically functionalized C-doped boron nitride nanoribbons and their interaction with organosulfur compounds

Abstract

The electronic and reactivity properties of carbon doped (C-doped) boron nitride nanoribbons (BNNRs) as a function of the carbon concentration were investigated in the framework of the density functional theory within the generalized gradient approximation. We found that the main routes to stabilize energetically the C-doped BNNRs involve substituting boron atoms near the edges. However, the effect of doping on the electronic properties depends of the sublattice where the C atoms are located; for instance, negative doping (partial occupations of electronic states) is found replacing B atoms, whereas positive doping (partial inoccupation of electronic states) is found when replacing N atoms with respect to the pristine BNNRs. Independently of the even or odd number of dopants of the C-doped BNNRs studied in this work, the solutions of the Kohn Sham equations suggest that the most stable solution is the magnetic one. The reactivity of the C-doped BNNRs is inferred from results of the dual descriptor, and it turns out that the main electrophilic sites are located near the dopants along the C-doped BNNRs. The reactivity of these nanostructures is tested by calculating the interaction energy between undesirable organosulfur compounds present in oil fuels on the C-doped BNNRs, finding that organosulfur compounds prefer to interact over nanosurfaces with dopants substituted on the B sublattice of the C-doped BNNRs. Most importantly, the selective C doping on the BNNRs offers the opportunity to tune the properties of the BNNRs to fit novel technological applications.